Stone a Top 200 Meters Sprinter in the 1970s

Emmanuel (Manny) Stone was "probably more visible on the basketball court," per an article in the Wooster Voice, yet it was the track where the speedster left his mark. He finished as a two-time top-four placer in the 200 meters at the NCAA Div. III Championships. 

The big three in the region - Purdue University, Ohio State University, and the University of Michigan, showed interest in Stone, who hailed from Maumee, Ohio. He ultimately chose Wooster because it was the school "most concerned about me completing my college degree." 

Sophomore year marked Stone's big breakthrough in track as he made the final of the 200 meters at the NCAA Div. III Championships at the University of Chicago. In that race, he placed fourth for All-America laurels with a time of 21.4. Stone was part of a five-person Wooster contingent at the 1977 NCAA Div. III Championships and competed in three events, including the 200 meters, where he placed third at 21.72. 

"Manny breezed through the prelims and semifinals," summed up Jim Bean, Wooster's head coach at the time in The Daily Record. "He ran a super race in the finals. He was nosed out at the finish by two runners from Southern University." 

Stone competed in the 100 meters at nationals as a junior and missed qualifying for finals and a third individual All-America honor by five hundredths of a second. Stone was part of Wooster's 4x100 relay at nationals that year. Wooster's quartet posted a school-record 41.99 in prelims to advance to the semifinals before not advancing. Stone joined Wooster legend Lou Wims as the program's second multi-time All-American and Reggie Ray is the only Scot to go on to earn more All-America honors than the standout duo. 

The stage was set for Stone to have a major senior year, but an unfortunate knee injury sidelined the two-sport standout. Bean was quoted in The Daily Record as believing Stone would have been the top 200 meters sprinter in the nation as a senior had it not been for the injury. 

In his three healthy seasons on the hardwood, Stone was a key forward, appearing in 63 games. He scored 301 points, secured 204 rebounds, and helped lead the team to the Ohio Athletic Conference North Division title as a junior. 

Stone credits his coaches and teammates being there for him as one of the keys to his success. He is particularly fond of how Bean "built my confidence and prepared my body to perform." 

The three-time Ohio Athletic Conference champion graduated with a degree in physical education and settled in Wooster, working for Rubbermaid in the warehouse and distribution before joining Wooster City Schools as a teacher for over two decades. He has been actively involved in the NAACP at the local and state levels, holding officer positions with both for over a decade. 

Stone and his wife, Patricia, reside in Wooster and have two grown children and three grandchildren.