The information on this page was copied from the Bristol Panthers 1979-80 Official Game Program...

1917-18 . . . Folklore has it . . . prior to the 1917-18 school year several basketball "town teams"  existed in the surrounding area and often played in grange halls, township buildings, etc.  One such facility did exist in the stable barn adjacent to the historic Bristol Inn located near Routes 45 & 88.  The construction of the present school in 1917 included one of the first school gyms in rural Trumbull County.  With a cement floor and seating capacity of 40-50 this facility was used until a new gym was constructed in 1926.  The first gym was located near the school's current boiler and band rooms.  The 1917-18 year was probably the first year for  a school sponsored basketball team. The 2016-17 team represented the 100th edition of Bristol Basketball.  During that span Bristol has had twenty-four Head Boy's Basketball Coaches.

1922-23 . . .  21-1 . . . Bristol's first championship year came during the 1922-23 season.  They won the Trumbull County T.I.A Tournament Championship.  The tournament was held at the Ohio Lamp gymnasium on Dana Avenue in Warren.  They defeated Kinsman 38 to 18 in the championship game to advance to the Akron Sectional.  The championship game was played before the largest crowds ever to attend a county game.  Losing to Hubbard at Akron represented their only loss of the season.  The team was coached by Superintendent Sewall with assistance from Warren teacher, Ed Robinson.  Members of the eight man squad were Don Barbe, Neil Shafer, Ellis List, John Hyde, Bill Shaw, Russell Hoy, Denzil Kincaid, and Francis Miller.

TEAM TRAVEL . . . 1924-25 . . . Dana Vandervort, a senior member of the 1924-25 squad relates this story of team travel '24-'25 style.  The team participated in the County tournament held at Hubbard.  They walked east to Spokane where the squad boarded a train for Warren.  Traveling by streetcar from Warren to Youngstown, they switched streetcars for the ride north to Hubbard.  After winning their first tournament game they traveled by streetcar to Hubbard the next day and losing their game, the squad returned home by the same method of travel.

1937-38 . . . County Champions . . . The 37-38 team won the County Tournament (25 teams) by recording three consecutive upset victories.  In the tournament quarter finals, they upset Champion, ended a 20 game winning streak for Johnston 16-13, and then upset Mineral Ridge 39-29 to win Bristol's first County Championship since 1929-1930.  Starters for the team were Randil Munson, Harold Shorts, Paul McDowell, Elmer Clark, and Joe Thomas.  McDowell, Clark and Thomas were named all-county in 1937-38.  Other members of the team included Francis Bauer, Bob Seipel, Robert McLean, Walter Stark and Robert Revis.  The 1937-38 team was coached by Raymon Harmon, now retired and living in Kent, Ohio.

1938-39 . . . 26-3 . . . Losing only to Champion 42-45 and Johnston 21-24 during regular season play, the Raymon Harmon coached team ran off a phenomenal string of twenty consecutive victories including ten during tournament play.  Robert Revis, Rank Lozner, Robert McLean, and Francis Bauer joined '37-'38 holdovers Joe Thomas and Elmer Clark in recording the most single season wins in school history.  Other members of the team included Brown, Charles Munson, George Smith and Marshall Stark.  During the County Tournament - 25 teams in all - they defeated Fowler 42-10, Greene 31-12, McDonald 35-21, and Vienna 27-18 to successfully defend Bristol's '38 championship title.  In the sectional tournament, they defeated East Conneaut 35-33 on a sudden death overtime goal by Lozner, Liberty 22-17, Poland 34-29 and Canfield 29-27, qualifying Bristol to the Kent District.  Scheduled for three consecutive nights of games and playing the tournament without the flu-ridden Robert McLean, Bristol Defeated Amherst 32-31 on a game winning goal by Joe Thomas with eight seconds remaining in the game.  Bristol then defeated previously unbeaten Canton St. John's 34-20 before losing in the championship game 27-38 to Rittman.  Rittman advanced to the state tournament in Columbus where they defeated upper Arlington 23-21 before losing in the quarter finals 25-31 to Monroe.  North Canton, also a Kent District winner, won the 1939 Class "B" state championship.

FRED CHURCH . . . 1943 . . . Fred Church as a starting guard on Bristol teams of '40, '41, '42 and '43.  During his junior year, the team completed the season with a 21-2 record and were runners-up in the T.I.A. County tournament.  Among members of the '42 team were Verne Wilcox, Frank Cross, Bob Starck and Gale Goodin.  Following a tour of duty in the service, Church played basketball, football, and baseball at Ohio Northern University where he graduated in 1949.  His first coaching assignment was at Class A Edon Northwest, Williams County.  After seven years at Edon, he moved to Class AAA Napoleon High School.  The 1978-79 team his 24th at Napoleon, registered a 22-2 record.  That team advanced to the Regional finals before losing to eventual State Champions, Columbus East.  The 1979-80 team were undefeated during the regular season and once again advanced to the regional finals before losing to Willard, finishing with a 25-1 record.  During the 1980-81 season, Napoleon won the State Championship in Class AA and finished the year with a perfect 28-0 record.  Church's career record stands at 424-232.  He also coached the North squad in the 1972 Ohio High School all-star game.  During the 1972-74 seasons, Fred served as the President of the Ohio High School Basketball Coach Association.  Fred retired from teaching and coaching at the end of the 1980-81 school year.

1944-45 . . . The Panther . . . During the 1944-45 school year a student contest was conducted in the Bristol Schools to select a nickname for the school's athletic teams.  The entry from student Vicky Evans was selected the winner and since that time the local school's athletic teams have been known as The Bristol Panthers.  Some years later another well-known Trumbull County School (Warren) also selected the Panther as its team nickname. 

LEIGH KLINGENSMITH . . . 1954 . . . Considered by many as one of the finest all-round athletes to have played with the Panthers.  He led the 1953-54 team to a 16-9 overall record while leading the scoring with 543 points for a 21.7 per game average.  He was Bristol's first 1,000 point scorer.  Klingensmith also excelled in baseball and track. He qualified for the state track meet during his junior and senior years, placing 5th in the high jump at the 1954 State Meet.  Klingensmith continued his athletic career at Bowling Green University and then coached at Bloomfield and Springfield Local High Schools.  he is best remembered for his 1968 team at Springfield advancing to the State Class "A" runners-up and his 1963 team, also at Springfield for advancing to the Class A semi-finals in Columbus.  Klingensmith was also a principal at Springfield Local.

BRISTOL'S 18 in Row . . . 1961-62 . . . During the 1961-62 season, the Bristol Panthers won 18 consecutive games.  The streak ended with a 66-67 defeat at Braceville.  Ironically, 12 days later, the Panthers were again defeated (56-64) by the same Braceville team in the Sectional Tournament.  the Panthers completed the season with an outstanding 19-2 record.  The 61-62 team was led by Chuck Ronbinson's 493 points and 23.4 ppg average.  Robinson also ranked second on the all time career scoring list with 1,217 points when he finished his Bristol career.  Robinson attended Ohio State University where he earned his PH.D. in History.  H was teaching high school in Fairfax, Virginia and coached the debate team.  During the 1976-77 school year, his debate team placed 3rd in the National Tournament.  He is now living in Arizona.

BRISTOL 131 - WARREN JFK 94 . . . The highest scoring game every played in Bristol's old gym occurred on February 5, 1965.  the two teams combined to score a prolific 76 points during the 4th quarter.  Bristol scored 53 field goals during the game and added 27 free throws while JFK scored 32 field goals and 30 free throws.  The two teams attempted a total of 80 free throws.  Four players scored 30 or more points in that game including Balint (33) and Cooper (31) for the Panthers.

THE FREE THROW FACTOR . . . The 71-72 and 72-73 teams recorded an overall 33-9 ledger and two League championships.  Their success, in part, can be attributed to their statistics at the free throw line.  In 42 games they were successful on 717 free throws from 1126 attempted.  During that span they limited their opponents to only 552 free throws attempted.  The 71-72 team recorded 407 made of 630 attempted for a .646 pct.  The two teams committed only 490 personal fouls to the opponents 808.  The 72-73 team, while recording a 51-50 victory at Southington, did not permit their opponent a single free throw attempt.  1972 graduate Ron Ohl established a best (at the time) ever 87 made of 104 attempted and a .837 percentage.  Other key members of the 71-72, 72-73 teams included John Markovich, Phil Burks, Ken Martin, Bent Scott, Tom Rine, Mark Culver, Al Peltola, Chip Cooper and Don Smith.

THE "HOUSE OF THRILLS" . . . During February, 1973 the final game played in Bristol's "ole gym"  resulted in a 75-52 Bristol victory over Orwell Grand Valley.  that game closed an era of exciting and thrilling games that dates back to the 1926-27 season.  During the later years the actual playing area (62 x 32) became outdated and the seating capacity (350) equally obsolete.  The 72-73 team played only six of their scheduled twenty games that year at home.  The "ole gym" was then utilized as a multi purpose room during the school day and for junior high basketball practice, Drama, etc during the after school activity period.  The gym was torn down in the year 2000 when the addition of the Elementary School was added to the back of the HS.  The Band and Choir rooms are now in the space the gym currently sat.  The center court was cut out, framed and now hanging on the wall of current gym.  Bristol's current gym (86 x 50) and seating for over 1,000 was opened in mid-January, 1974 and now has been the home to the Panthers for nearly 50 years.

Kim Mackey ... 1978 ... Seventeen School Records...During the years 1974-78 Kim Mackey established herself as one of the finest all-around girl athletes to have attended Bristol.  She won an unprecedented eleven varsity sports letters and held or shared seventeen school records in basketball and track.  Kim qualified for the district track meet four consecutive years and anticipated in the Girls' State Track meet during the 1976 season.  She also won letters in softball, cheerleading, and basketball.  Although not playing basketball her freshman year, she made the most of the next three seasons.  A starting member of two district qualifying teams and a two-time choice for All-League Honors, she broke virtually every girl's individual basketball record at Bristol.  Kim broke many of the records previously established by 1977 graduate and former KSU Branch star performer, Melanie Greathouse.  At the conclusion of the 1978 season, Kim was voted the Trumbull "A" Leagues' Most Valuable Player aWards and was named Trubnull County Class "A: Player of the Year by the Warren Tribune Chronicle.  Kim is now married and living in Germany.

Val Novicki - Mile Run - 1968 - The success of miler Val Novicki during the 1968 track season is an amazing story.  With interest in the boys' track team at a low level and a few candidates on the team, plus no track facility, Novicki,  nevertheless, accomplished a rare feat during that season.  Having never run the mile run event before his senior year, and because of the low interest in track at that time, the team participated in only four meets during the season.  Novicki participated in only two regular season meets but still won the mile run at the League meet, the sectional, placed third at the district qualifying him for the state meet in in Columbus.  Although the state meet represented only his sixth competitive race, his seventh place finish in a time of 4:37.2 was the school record in the mile run at the time.  An avid outdoorsman, Novicki moved to Casper, Wyoming after high school.

BRISTOL GOLF TRADITION . . . The Bristol High School Golf Team has won or shared six League championships since 1968.  During the 1976-78 seasons, they compiled an overall 42-7 regulars season record while adding sectional championships in '76 and '78.  During the 1978 season, sophomore Scott Mathews while playing his first full round of golf ever, recorded a hole-in-one at Forest Oaks Golf Course.  One of the most outstanding team records was a team total of 144 at Bristol Springs (Bristolwood) on September 27, 1978.  The total represents par golf for all four scorers.  the individual scores were J. Costanzo 31, E. List 35, B. Mackey 38, and J. Friend 40.  Constanzo's 31, five under par, also represents a school record.  Costanzo, with a season average of 37.1 and a Sectional Medalist in 1978 received the Thomas Banish Memorial Awards as the outstanding golfer in Trumbull County.  He attended Youngstown State University.  The 1979 team continued the traditon with a 7-1 league record and a League Co-Championship.  Other championship years were 1968, 1974, 1976, 1977, and 1978.

"Light the Panther" . . .  The Panther that sits in the corner of the Bristol HS gymnasium was constructed and donated by Ray Perkins SR and sister Nadine Perkins in 1967 in honor of their boys Ray JR, Ron, and Rich who played basketball.  Nadine drew the Panther, Ray cut, and they both painted.   The Panther was lit after every win until the early 2000's.  At that time the Panther was only lit when Bristol would score 100 points in a game.  Bristol again lights the Panthers after each home win.

22-0 . . . The 2012-13 season marked the first season that Ohio varsity basketball teams were allowed to play 22 games (previously 20) in a season.  The 2012-13 version of the Bristol Panthers celebrated the extra two games a year by winning all 22 scheduled.  Led by senior Chad Oliver and junior Brandon Lee the Bristol offense was in good hands each and every night.  This season also marked the beginning of "Bristol Bedlam" a full court run and jump defense that has been a staple of the Bristol Boys Basketball teams since 2013.  Bristol started the season with a 20 point victory over JFK, scored 45 points in the first quarter against rival Southington on the way to 114 points, won three classic nail biters against PV, Garfield, and Valley Christian before winning the WKBN Game of the Week at Maplewood and soon there after capping the perfect season off with a win at Southington.  Oliver finished the season breaking numerous scoring records and was named Bristol's 4th TCCA Trumbull County Player of the Year joining 1994 recipient Jeff Kassan, 2002 John King, and 2003 Craig Giesy.  Gage Elza also won the award in 2019.  

3o Regular Season Games in a Row . . . In the span of three seasons the Panthers won 30 regular season games in a row.  The streak started on Senior Night of the 2011-12 Season with the Panthers beating Newbury in come from behind fashion.  The 2012-13 season saw Bristol going 22-0 to keep the streak alive at 23 wins heading into the 2013-14 season.  Bristol started that campain 7-0 before losing a game at Columbiana during Christmas break.  That night marked the end of the longest winning streak in school history.

The season during a pandemic . . . The coronavirus made for a really interesting 2020-21 basketball season.  After not being able to compete against other teams all summer long, the Panthers practice the month of November and competed in a couple of scrimmages but the county superintendents and health department shut down the season before Bristol played their first game.  The boys team opened up on January 4th, 2021, and proceeded to play 7 games in 12 days before being shut down again.  Bristol returned to action on Feb 2nd and went on to play 6 games in 8 days before being shut down for the third time.  This shutdown to the Panthers right to tournament play in which Bristol was able to play 4 games on route to winning a District Championship.  The boys ended the year playing 17 games total and finishing with a record of 13-4.

10 Consecutive League Championships . . . The Bristol Boys Basketball program won or shared 10 consecutive NAC Championships from 2012-2021.  The streak ended in 2022 as the boys team finished 2nd in the league.

BASKETBALL RULE CHANGES . . . With the growth of the game of basketball came several major rule changes.  Listed below are a few major collegiate changes that occurred over the years.  High School rules usually followed within a year or two and in certain cases with slight alterations.

1894-95 . . . free throw line moved from 20 to 15 feet of the basket.

1895-96 . . . field goal changed from 3 to 2 points; foul shots from 3 to 1 point.

1897-98 . . . player could not touch ball with both hands more than once.

1912-13 . . . nets open on bottom.  Numbers mandatory on jerseys of players.

1920-21 . . . backboards moved 2 feet from walls of court.  This prevented players from "climbing" up the wall for a shot.

1929-30 . . . the double referee system was introduced.

1936-37 . . . 3 second lane violation became a rule, eliminating tall players from standing near basket for easy field goal attempts.

1937-38 . . . the center jump, after a field goal or foul shot was eliminated.

1948-49 . . . players permitted to consult with coach during time-out.

1956-58 . . . the free throw lane was widened from 6 to 12 feet

1967-68 . . . time a player can hold or dribble ball in midcourt area reduced from 30 seconds to 10 seconds

1972-73 . . . offended team is awarded ball out-of-bounds for first six common fouls, the bonus rule taking effect with the seventh foul, in high school rules the first fives common fouls with bonus on the sixth.

Basketball Rule Changes for 81-82...

1.  During a foul shot, players may now enter the key when the ball leaves the free thrower's hand.  Any players including the shooter who is not lined up along the key for the foul shot, must stand behind the foul line extended and may not go beyond the foul line extended until the ball hits the rim or backboard.

2.  Any technical changed to "bench" personnel results in two free throws.  Before only the coach was automatically charged with two.

3.  When the 5 second closely guarded count is reaching it is no longer a jump-ball.  The defensive team is now awarded the ball out-of-bounds.

4.  A new rule has been adopted to help simplify over-and-back, when advancing the ball from backcourt to frontcourt.  Now, both feet and the ball must go across the midcourt line to change status from backcourt to frontcourt.  A player cna now have both feet in frontcourt and still be dribbling the ball in backcourt and pass or dribble back into the backcourt.  A player could straddle the midcourt line and pass back into the backcourt.

5.  Only rubber or elastic bands may be used to control hair.  A headband of solid color may also be worn to control hair.