Induction ceremony set for Saturday in Frazee

Five new members of the Frazee-Vergas High School Hall of Fame will be honored on Saturday night at the Frazee Event Center.

The new inductees include the 1996 softball team, Hans Hanson, Marvin Dretsch, Gabe Dretsch and Tara Heston. The Hall of Fame induction ceremony will begin at 5 p.m. with a social hour, before a dinner is held at 5:45 p.m. The cost for the dinner will be $10 per plate. 

1996 softball team

The 1996 Frazee softball team was the first softball team to ever qualify for the state tournament. They did this by qualifying in the two class system, which now softball has a four class system. This team elevated the bar for not only the softball program, but for all our girls’ programs.  

Frazee lost to state-ranked Perham in the subsection 10-8; however, the top two teams qualified for the section tournament.  Once again Frazee met up with Perham in the section championship, where the Hornets then defeated the Yellowjackets 11-5 to qualify for the state tournament.   

Hans Hanson

Hans Hanson graduated from Frazee High School in 1985 where he competed in football, basketball and baseball and lettered in all three sports. 

Hans was team captain of the 1985 Hall of Fame baseball team where he played a key role. Hans was a three year starter for the baseball team and played in the position as the team catcher. His senior year he was elected all-district and all-conference.  His batting average was .305 during the regular season and served as a relief pitcher in rotation.  Hans competed at the college level at Fergus Falls Community College playing both basketball and baseball. He was their starting catcher and pitcher for two years. Hans then later finished his BS degree at Moorhead State where he then turned to teaching and coaching.  

Hans started his career in Underwood as a teacher and the head girls basketball coach. He then moved to Perham where his coaching career took off. He became the head girls basketball coach where the team showed steady improvement to the point where he led them to a section runner up finish in 2007. His baseball coaching career began in 1998 and ran until 2014. During his career he earned three state placing finishes with his best finish coming in 2013 as runner up.  

During his coaching career Hans was awarded the Minnesota State Class AA Coach of the Year in Baseball in 2003. Most recently Hans was inducted into the Minnesota Baseball Coaches Hall of Fame in 2019 and the Perham Hall of Fame 2021.  

Marvin Dretsch

Marvin Dretsch graduated in 1955 where he earned multiple letters in both football and basketball. He was known in football for being elusive with the ball. Big plays are what separated Marvin from his opponents as he was capable of doing it at any time. Known as an all around solid basketball player, basketball is where Marvin shined.   

Marvin played a key role in starting a competitive run for the Frazee basketball teams. Marvin played strong defense, was given the name “Sharp Shooter,” and if he wasn’t shooting the ball, he was beating competitors with his assists.  During this time, Marvin was picked as one of the best players in the entire district, which included all the big schools since everything was run in a one class system.   

During Marvin’s junior year, he averaged 15.9 points per game and set the single game individual scoring record with 35 points. His senior year, he averaged 18 points per game and topped it off as the school’s leading scorer with 841 points, in his career. Marvin worked for Daggett Truck Line after he was married and later worked for Dart Transit Company until he retired in 1994. Marvin passed away on April 2, 2023.

Gabe Dretsch

Gabe Dretsch graduated in 2003 and was a standout wrestler in high school and college.  

During Gabe’s high wrestling career he earned 4 HOL championships, 4 individual section championships, was a four time state entrant, placing sixth, third, and finally was a state champ his senior year at 160 lbs.  He went on to place fourth in the high school nationals, which earned him high school All-American honors.  

During his tenure, he was a part of two state championship teams. Gabe was recruited to the MN Golden Gophers to wrestle.  During his time, he earned an overall record of 110-54 wrestling at 174 lbs, and was a four-time national qualifier.  He earned this by placing 7th–2005, 4th–2006 and 2007, and 2nd in 2008 in the Big Ten Championships.  He was a member of two Big Ten championship teams and one NCAA Division 1 National Championship team in 2007.  

During Gabe’s post college career he was 5th in the US National Greco Roman Tournament in 2009, and then placed 4th in the Greco-Roman World Team Trials in 2009.  Gabe graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2008 with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Wildlife Management.  He is currently employed as an Environmental Coordinator for MnDOT out of Detroit Lakes.

Tara Heston

Tara Heston graduated in 2002 setting many high marks. She began her varsity career by starting in all three sports (volleyball, basketball, and softball) during her freshman year.  

Tara racked up many statistical awards throughout her career including 12 letter awards even though she lost a portion of her junior year due to an ACL injury.  

During Tara’s basketball career she earned HOL All conference and team MVP during her sophomore, junior and senior years of basketball. She lead the team annually in scoring, rebounding, and blocks.  During her senior season Tara averaged over 15 points per game, she earned all section and was elected to play on the Minnesota western all-star team.  She ended her basketball career as the all time leader in rebounds, the second player ever to reach 1,000 points, fourth in steals, fifth in blocks, and 11th in assists.  

During Tara’s softball career, she was voted team captain and earned HOL Honorable mention her senior year. Other notable achievements included her being a member of the JR Basketball National Team, she maintained a GPA 3.39 throughout high school, she was an active member in band all six years of high school and was elected homecoming princess her junior year.  

Tara went on to graduate with honors from the University of Wisconsin-Stout majoring in retail management and marketing. Tara’s knee injury kept her from playing at the college level. Tara currently resides in Los Angeles, Calif., where she currently runs her own Pilates business DualCore Fitness.