officials

Gary Schiefer

Year Inducted: 2001

Category: Officials

Schools / Organizations: IHSA
WBOA

Biography: Gary Schiefer of Downers Grove had officiated high school basketball for 29 years at the time of his induction. Schiefer began working boys’ games and officiated seven IHSA regionals. In the mid-1980s, Schiefer also began working girls’ games and in 1990 switched fully to girls’ high school basketball.  Schiefer was assigned to 20 IHSA girls’ regionals, 15 sectionals and 12 super-sectionals. Four times – 1988, 1989, 1991 and 1998 – Schiefer was selected to work the girls’ state tournament. In 1991, Schiefer officiated the girls’ state championship game with usual partner Marlyn Marquardt, with whom he co-founded the Western Basketball Officials Association in 1977.  He figured he worked more than 5,000 games through 2001. He feels all high school basketball games are “special to the kids.” He says his preference to officiating girls’ games is because “girls coaches are actually more willing to discuss things instead of screaming.”  Schiefer had been the WBOA assignment chairman since 1977 and assigned officials for 48 schools. He is a past president of the WBOA and served the IHSA as a clinician.