Former Whitko Hoops Star Dies
Former Whitko High School basketball standout Steve Mort died in a car accident Wednesday in Starke County.
Mort, a resident of Pierceton, was killed in an accident involving a semi on U.S. 30 near the Grovertown Truck Stop. Mort’s brother Tim was injured in the crash and was taken to a South Bend hospital. The brothers were on their way to Chicago to attend the PGA Ryder Cup.
Mort, 50, was a 1981 Whitko graduate. He starred for the Wildcats while playing for longtime coach Bill Patrick. Patrick, who has won 693 games in his illustrious 43-year coaching career, is now the coach at Tippecanoe Valley High School.
Mort averaged 20 points-per-game his senior season in helping Whitko post a 21-3 record, including a 5-1 mark in the Three Rivers Conference, and win the Columbia City Sectional championship. The 6-0 senior was the top scorer his senior year for the Wildcats, who lost 58-55 to Warsaw in the Elkhart Regional final. He also played baseball and football at Whitko and went on to attend Glen Oaks College and then played basketball at Huntington College. Mort scored 978 points in his high school career.
Mort, who has four children, worked for J.C. Hammon Construction in Leesburg.
Visitation for Mort will be Saturday at the DeMoney-Grimes Countryside Funeral Home in Columbia City. Funeral services are scheduled for 2 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 30, at the funeral home. (See full obituary)