Dike-New Hartford Superintendent Justin Stockdale was recently inducted into the IHSAA Officials Hall of Fame.
He says it was an honor to be inducted alongside other standouts who he got to know during the course of his officiating career. The induction ceremony was held during halftime of the Class 1A basketball championship game.
After graduating from Aplington-Parkersburg in 1993, he began officiating basketball and baseball at age 19. After starting out officiating junior high and lower level contests as a part-time job, he quickly rose into a hoops standout during a nearly 30-year run. Stockdale was assigned to work 33 state basketball tournaments across IHSAA and IGHSAU, including 10 title appearances and 18 consecutive boys’ tournaments. He worked alongside John Conlon and Ryan Eklund during his successful run, and also officiated three years in the American Rivers Conference in NCAA Division III.
He hung up his whistle when he became the superintendent at DNH in 2018. He says his time as an official helped shape his career as an administrator.
He is also a current member of the IHSAA’s Representative Council and Classification Committee.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MBWvBrLRdP4?si=0A6NY5aX_nCkLs2n&w=560&h=315]
