Woodrow Wilson Sports History (1936-1959)

Woodrow Wilson High School began its Interhigh Athletic competition in the 1936-'37 school year. The school played its first football game on October 16, 1936, a 12-0 victory vs St. Alban's in a driving rain storm. This 1st team was coached by Carl Heintel and the stars of this inaugural squad that went 3-2 in a non Interhigh Series season were RB Dave Tate (who scored Wilson's 1st ever touchdown), RB Nick Cokinos, and E Johnny Stevens.

For his play on the gridiron in the fall of 1937 (the football teams first season as a member of the Interhigh Series), Stevens would be chosen Wilson's first All High player for football . Also, in the 1937-38 season, Charles Findley was named their first All High for Basketball. However, a year earlier in the spring of 1937, it was 1B Bill Hawksworth who batted .500 and "whose play around the base was a thing of beauty", and P Kilmer Bortz, Wilson's strikeout phenom, who were honored as Wilson's 1st ever All High selections in a major sport, for baseball. Coach Heintel also coached the Wilson Basketball and Baseball teams.

On April 20, 1937, Wilson Pitching ace, Bortz with his "befuddling drop" pitch, struck out 16 Central batters as Wilson's 8-3 victory at Central Stadium was the school's first win in Interhigh sports. A year earlier on June 6, 1936, the first ever Wilson baseball team playing an abbreviated non -Interhigh schedule, played and defeated Western High School, just 3 days after the Red Raiders had won the Interhigh championship. Bortz was the winning pitcher.

The "Presidents" (as they were frequently called by the newspaper sports writers in the early years) played the first home football game in their new Wilson Stadium on October 6, 1939 (vs Landon), although the official flag raising Stadium dedication took place on October 27 in front of a capacity crowd of 2,000 prior to the kickoff of their '39 Interhigh home opener vs Western.

Wilson's first Interhigh Championship team was its 1942 Basketball squad. Led by All-High tandem Donald Hillock and Fred Vinson, the Tony Kupka coached "Green Tigers" defeated the Red Auerbach coached Roosevelt team in the semifinals and then beat Central 46-23 for the title. Undefeated Wilson, coached by Joe Carlo, won its only City Championship in football in December 1952 beating St. John's 24-6 before a crowd of 12,000 in Griffith Stadium. Stars that day were All Mets Lon Herzbrun, Mike Sommer, Chico Stone and Max Carpenter.

The historic Brown v. Board of Education decision came down in May,1954. On Dec 4, 1954, five Wilson players -Don McMurray, John Webster, Bob Rogers, Mike Hixson, and Leland Phillips were selected to participate in the first integrated High School football game ever played in Washington DC. Before a crowd of 8800 at Griffith Stadium, the integrated Interhigh (Public High) All Stars ended St Johns 13 game winning streak, defeating the Johnnies 12-7 to capture the 1954 City Football Championship.

Wilson won back to back Interhigh basketball titles in 1953 and 1954 led on the court by scoring stars Lon Herzbrun in '53 and super Soph Lew Luce in '54. For his outstanding play in 1952-53, Lon Herzbrun would become the only Wilson athlete to ever be named 1st team All Met in both Football and Basketball in the same school year. Lefty Sam Swindells (8-0) pitched, and SS Marty Gorewitz batted 4 for 4, as the Sherman Rees coached "Tigers" defeated Coolidge 8-1 in Griffith Stadium to win their first Interhigh baseball championship as the team finished the 1959 season with a perfect record of 18-0.