MVHS Inducts New Hall of Fame Members

By DAVE BELCHER

The Progress

Moapa Valley High School added a number of honorees to its Hall of Fame during a special induction ceremony and banquet held at the school on Friday evening, Aug. 25. The new inductees were also recognized in front of Friday night’s home football game crowd.

Individuals inducted included two former MVHS teachers: Jeff Keel and Ronald Dalley, and a legendary Pirate athlete and alumnus Mark Case. Also inducted was the entire 1967 Moapa Valley High School state championship football team.

During Friday night’s induction banquet, a bio was read about each of the new inductees.

Jeff Keel
Former MVHS teacher and coach Jeff Keel was born in Fillmore, Utah on July 20, 1952. He attended Millard High School in Fillmore and graduated in 1970 with honors. Jeff played football, basketball, and ran track for all four years.

After graduating in 1970, Jeff attended Southern Utah University on a football scholarship as a four-year starter at defensive end, earning several postseason accolades. Jeff graduated from SUU in 1974 with the honor of being SUU’s Outstanding Football Player.

Jeff coached and taught at MVHS for 46 years before retiring in 2020. He served as the defensive coordinator for Pirate varsity football all 46 years from (1974-2020). During that time the Pirates captured 28 regular season league titles with 10 state runner-up trophies and 10 state championship crowns.

Jeff’s overall basketball coaching record finished with 444 victories.
He headed the track and field boys’ team for 13 years from (1975-1987), became the girls head coach for eight years (1993-2000), was head coach for both the boys and the girls (2001-2003), and finally assisted with both teams from 2004 through his retirement after the 2020 season.

Jeff led the Pirates to two boys’ Region Championships, eight girls’ Region Titles, with two girls’ State Runner-Up trophies, and three girls’ State Championship titles.

Jeff was inducted into the Nevada InterscholastIc Athletec Associaton Hall of Fame in June of 2023. At that time, the NIAA officials believed that Jeff Keel was the longest-serving multi-sports coach in the history of Nevada high school sports.

Ronald Dalley
Ron Dalley was born in Cedar City, Utah on Christmas Day in 1936. He lived in Panaca, Nevada until he was about 11 years old when his family moved to Overton.
Ron started his 6th grade year at MVHS and attended the school all through high school graduating in May 1954.

Ron was active in sports and extracurricular activities as an MVHS student. He played basketball and participated in track and field, competing in the hurdles, long jump, and high jump.

But he really excelled in extra-curricular activities: Theatre, Speech and Debate, and Student Council. As a senior, he received the Theatre Award, he won the first round of the American Legion Oratorical Contest, and he was Student Body President.

In 1993, when the new high school building was opened, Dalley christened the brand-new theater by producing a play called “Noises Off!” This play called for a large set that would rotate 180 degrees so that Act II could be played “backstage.”

Ron produced amazing theater and created wonderful sets for Moapa Valley audiences. He was surprised when then-MVHS principal, Dr. Larry Moses had the MVHS theater officially named the “Ronald A. Dalley Theater of the Performing Arts.”

During his teaching career, Ron taught English, Speech and Debate, Theatre, and Technical Theatre. He also coached boys and girls track and field and girls volleyball. Mr. Dalley retired (the first time) in 1995, having taught for 37 years at Moapa Valley High School. However, in 1996, Moses asked him to come back and teach part time. He taught the English AP, Theatre, and TheatreTech classes. He also began teaching some evening English, literature, and speech classes at CSN.

After he finally retired (the second time) from MVHS in 2002, Mr. Dalley got an adjunct position at Dixie State in St. George. He taught at CSN and Dixie State for several years after that.

Mark Kase
Born to James and Patricia Kase on August 22, 1958, and moved to Moapa Valley in 1964. He excelled at sports from a young age and eventually became one of the last four-sport athletes at MVHS.

Mark lettered in football, basketball, baseball, and track. By his senior year, he was a stand-out athlete in all four. He was the quarterback of the 1975 state-champion football team and player of the year. He helped lead the 1976 basketball team to a state title where he led the team in points and rebounds. In the spring he was one of the last athletes to be allowed to participate in two sports excelling at baseball and track.

In the years following high school Mark continued to give back to the community. He spent many years coaching youth sports and helped build the talent pool of future Pirates. He was involved with the middle school football teams, youth basketball, and little league. For over a decade, there wasn’t a season that Mark wasn’t donating his time to help improve athletics in Moapa Valley.

1967 MVHS Football Team
This team won their first of two back-to-back state football championships, and the second of the three-peat as they were part of the 1966 state championship team as well. This team also beat Virgin Valley in a legendary game that ended with a score of 103-0.