Championship basketball coach, longtime Wilmington College professor Jerry Scheve passes away

Wilmington College’s campus and alumni community are saddened to learn that a giant in the long history of the institution’s athletics program has died. Jerry Scheve, 75, of Cincinnati, succumbed May 19 after a protracted illness.

The emeritus associate professor of accounting retired from WC in 2021 after 44 years of teaching and 30 years as head coach of the Lady Quakers Basketball (LQB) team.

President Corey Cockerill fondly remembers Scheve as both a valued faculty colleague and an accomplished coach with a credo for excellence. "When I think about Jerry, I think about integrity. He didn’t just believe in it or talk about it — he lived it. Though I never played for him, I saw Jerry as a coach, a mentor and a guiding presence. In the Quaker tradition, we might call him ‘weighty’ — someone whose words carried depth and meaning.”
 
The president cited a posted quote in the women’s basketball locker room that became Scheve’s team mantra. “It read, ‘Play with the poise and intensity of a national championship team.’ He referenced it often, not just as an aspiration but as an expectation,” she added. “Jerry had an unwavering belief in his players. No matter what challenges they faced, he believed greatness and excellence were always within reach."
 
Matt Croci, the College’s new director of athletics, comes from the coaching ranks at rival Ohio schools, Wittenberg and Kenyon. “Coach Scheve is a legend among the state’s collegiate basketball coaches. His passing reminds us of his paramount role in the College’s athletics heritage and leaves us with the task of appropriately honoring this great coach’s memory and legacy — which we will do.”

Arrangements are pending, but a celebration of life service will be held at Wilmington College in the coming days.

Scheve’s 518 victories make him one of the most successful coaches in NCAA Division III history. The jewel in the crown of his coaching resume features the 2004 NCAA Division III national championship. After coaching high school and AAU basketball, he described the opportunity to coach the women’s team at Wilmington College as “a dream come true.”

Scheve’s first season in the collegiate ranks, 1990-91, coincided with WC’s transition from NAIA to NCAA Division III the next year. Success came quickly as, in his second season at the helm, he led the Lady Quakers to the Western Buckeye Conference title in 1991-92. That year featured the first of his 11 seasons with 20 or more victories and his conference championship initiated a string of titles in the WBC, Association of Mideast Colleges (AMC) and Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (HCAC) throughout the 1990s, and the Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) since WC’s inaugural 2000-01 OAC campaign.

"Coaching championship teams in four conferences is one of my proudest accomplishments," he added.

Wilmington stormed into the OAC as a force to be reckoned with. It won conference titles in both 2001-02 (28-2) and 2002-03 (26-3), advancing to the Elite 8 and Sweet 16 rounds, respectively, of the National Tournament. In 2003-04, the magic appeared to have dissipated with a regular season that paled when compared to the success of the previous two years. The defending OAC champs earned the number three seed in the OAC Tournament with a 14-4 conference record.

Scheve recalls the team's late regular season malaise and assistant coach Bill Newland saying, "You need to talk to them — now." He knew the team had talent and could compete at a high level, but it wasn't running on all cylinders.

"I told them, 'The choice is yours. We can play for four more days or four more weeks,'" he recalled. The team stormed through the OAC Tournament and played Albion College in the opening round of the “Big Dance,” the National Tournament. Down at halftime, "I saw a look in their eyes I hadn't seen the entire season." The second half featured a 22-6 run en route to a 75-60 victory.

They fulfilled the "survive and advance" mode throughout the post-season, which included subsequent wins over Franklin, Thomas More, Puget Sound and Rochester. That run set up the title game hosted at Virginia Wesleyan University. Talk about a team that rose to the occasion!

"We played in five close games during the regular season and lost them all," Scheve said. "We were behind at halftime in five of our six tournament games — and won them all. I'm not sure what changed, but I do know the players and coaches never quit believing that we could do what we did. We had special players, special coaches, special support staff and special fans — and it finally all came together."

The Lady Quakers upset previously undefeated and top-ranked Bowdoin College (ME) in a 54-51 championship thriller. Senior All-American Tara Rausch was named Tournament MVP and Scheve earned NCAA Division III Coach-of-the-Year honors.

"Every year we had two goals: to get better every day and to win the national championship," Scheve said. "Both are extremely difficult to do, and I don't think we ever fully accomplished the first goal. But to have accomplished the second goal is truly special! When you win your last game in the tournament, there are no regrets. You don't have to think of missed shots or bad calls or any of the hundred things that can go wrong.

"That team overcame everything that could or did go wrong and proved they were the best team in the country."

Ten years later, the Ohio Basketball Hall of Fame inducted both the team and Scheve as members of its 2014 induction class. The coach’s teams continued their success after 2004, the season for the ages. Indeed, the next five campaigns saw at least 19 wins annually and, most recently, the 2017 team played in the OAC title game.

Scheve said motivating young people to do their best and always strive to get better was a constant in his coaching philosophy. "You have to have a passion for what you're doing," he said about his success. "You have to recruit and keep good players who are good people. You have to have good assistant coaches. I think I always tried to do things the right way and treat people the right way — when you do that, you tend to get the best out of people."

Of course, cutting down nets and hoisting trophies highlight Scheve's stellar career, but he also holds great appreciation for the process of building and maintaining a quality program — and all those he encountered along the way who employed their skills and passion toward that noble end.

"Just being able to coach basketball and being associated with great young ladies is the biggest highlight," he said. "I enjoyed every year and some of my favorite teams were teams that were not very successful from a win-loss standpoint. I've had the opportunity to coach many extraordinary young women. It was an opportunity for me to grow and learn from what they brought to our team.

"Getting to coach young people, watch them grow and see them succeed in life is what it's always been about."