Three-Sport Standout Shelly Mittleman Enters Hall of Fame

Shelly Mittleman was one of those rare three-sport standouts in high school, excelling on both the turf and the court – a legend in soccer, basketball and baseball. But his recent induction into the Cranford High School Sports Hall of Fame caught him off guard. He wasn't too thrilled at first – but warmed up after nostalgia for high school sports got the best of him.

"I never really cared about awards," admitted  Mittleman. "I just liked playing. I wasn't real excited about this, but as soon as I got here and saw all the people that I knew, it was a whole new experience."

Mittleman, who has lived on the west coast for 45 years, attended the University of Michigan and the University of Alaska-Fairbanks after leaving high school in 1965.                              

He was a three-year letter-winner on the varsity soccer team, and was named second-team all-county in 1964. Yet his career wasn't enough to boost him in the eyes of college recruiters.

"I had a good high school career, not good enough to be a college player. I was too short and too slow to play basketball and not big and strong enough at that level, but after my basketball career, I got a feeling for the rules, so I started refereeing," he said.

Comfortable in pinstripes, his interest in game rulings led to an outstanding career as a basketball, tennis, lacrosse and softball official, working numerous tournaments for the PAC-10 along the way. 

In high school however, Mittleman's biggest success came on the hardwood -- where dribbling the ball down the court as a guard in basketball he made first-team all-county and all-conference in 1965, while also making the all-star team in the Schenectady, N.Y. Christmas tournament in 1964.

It was also in basketball that Mittleman rubbed shoulders with the greats. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who's picture was later framed on the wall of the NBA Hall of Fame, also surfaced on the court during the 1964 tournament.

"When we played, nobody shot jump shots, it was all layups. We all geared around auburn shuffle and layups. When we saw these teams play Kareem, they couldn't shoot anywhere inside fifteen feet. He blocked everything," Mittelman said. He added however, that he and his teammates just missed by a hair the chance to spar against Abdul-Jabbar.

"We didn't get to play him because we played against Pat Riley's former high school. We were up 18-0 in that game and lost, noted Mittleman. "If we had won that game, we would have played Kareem's team."

Mittleman's junior varsity coach at CHS was also Hubie Brown – a name now associated with the major leagues. Brown transformed into one of the NBA's best coaches for decades to come, training not only the New York Knicks, but also the Kentucky Colonels, Atlanta Hawks and Memphis Grizzlies. He is now a broadcaster sitting in the booth for both ESPN and ABC.

"Hubie Brown and I talked all the time, so it's sort of been nice that way," added Mittleman. "We had a great time and we had a good team." 

Duing Brown's stay at Cranford High School, the Cougears were named first-team all-state in 1965 by the Elizabeth Daily Journal and won the Watchung Conference title with a 17-0 mark in 1965. The previous year, the Cougars captured the Union County Tournament championship for the very first time. 

His most memorable moment came against Scotch Plains with his team trailing by one. 

"On the jayvee -- I was the little guy who put in a hook shot off the rebound to win the game in a walk-off."

And now, he can put his hall of fame plaque right next to his game-winning shot.

                                           Career Highlights

              ALL-COUNTY HONORABLE MENTION  1964

                     2 YEAR LETTER WINNER 1962-64

            AMERICAN LEGION BASEBALL ALL-STAR 1964

                             COLLEGE WRESTLING                                              

              FINALIST, INTRAMURAL WRESTLING 140 LBS

              ADDITIONAL ATHLETIC ACHIEVEMENTS

  SELECTED AS BASKETBALL OFFICIAL FOR SEAMCO CLASSIC

        AT KUTCHER'S FOR HIGH SCHOOL ALL-AMERICANS

               TENNIS PRO – FAIRBANKS, ALASKA 1982-85

           ASA SOFTBALL UMPIRE – WORKED 4 NATIONAL

     TOURNAMENTS FOR FAST AND SLOW PITCH SOFTBALL

        SELECTED AS A MENS FASTPITCH UMPIRE FOR THE

               MACCABBIAH GAMES IN ISRAEL 1993 & 1997

                 COLLEGE LACROSSE OFFICIAL 1997-2000

            COLLEGE PAC 10 SOFTBALL UMPIRE 1997-2003

 COLLEGE PAC 10 SOFT. UMPIRE EVALUATOR  2004-2009

             USTA & ITA TENNIS OFFICIAL  2007-2009

  SOCCER OFFICIALS COMMISSIONER(EUGENE, OR) 1994-2003

  BASKETBALL OFFICIALS ASSOC. TREAS.(EUGENE) 1997-2009

                 OREGON STATE UMPIRE OF THE YEAR 1992