Inductees

Back in the 1970s, Dave Plassmeyer was studying to become an accountant when he set aside the calculator and realized that, if he went on to that career, it wouldn’t be all that fun.

Having grown up in Owensville just west of St. Louis as a big St. Louis Cardinals fan – pitcher Bob Gibson was his favorite player – Plassmeyer turned his attention elsewhere. And it left him smiling.

“I was going into accounting and one night, I realized I really didn’t want to do this,” Plassmeyer said. “I said, ‘I think I’d like to be a P.E. teacher.’”

Call it one of the best decisions of his life, as Plassmeyer found his way into public education and became a successful baseball coach at Lebanon High School. In fact, his success there is why the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame proudly inducted Plassmeyer with the Class of 2025.

Plassmeyer coached the Lebanon Yellowjackets baseball program for 25 seasons (1979-2003), with his players and staff helping the club to a 323-218 record. Two of his teams reached the Final Four, with the 1982 team placing fourth and the 2002 team placing fourth. His teams also won nine conference championships, nine district titles, made six state quarterfinal appearances and won eight other tournaments.

Along the way, his teams enjoyed 19 winning seasons, and Plassmeyer gave back to the community in other ways, as he was a junior high school basketball and football coach for 18 seasons.

“Luckily, I got to stay at one school for 25 years,” Plassmeyer said, and then joked, “Sometimes you win.  And sometimes you learn.”

When Plassmeyer took over the Lebanon baseball program, he was the so-called young pup among Ozark Conference coaches. The old guard included Hillcrest’s Dick Birmingham (MSHOF 2002), Glendale’s Don Provance (MSHOF 2019) and Parkview’s Dale Neth. Birmingham coached 25 years, and Provance and Neth each coached 29 seasons.

Fortunately for Lebanon, Plassmeyer learned from the veteran coaches and went on to make the Yellowjackets a competitive program.

Sports were near and dear to him anyway, and his decision to ditch accounting in favor of coaching allowed him to positively influence thousands of lives.

Plassmeyer had graduated from Owensville High School, where he played basketball, ran track and played baseball. He later graduated from Southwest Missouri State in 1973 and then signed his first teaching and coaching contract at Joel E. Barber Elementary School.

“I signed a contract at 1 o’clock in the morning and stayed there for three years,” Plassmeyer said. “I remember I was watching at a high school basketball game and the principal asked me if I wanted to come to the high school.”

Plassmeyer was an assistant coach for one season and then was named head coach. He then made sure to keep the Yellowjackets competitive by focusing on the fundamentals.

“I felt, with my years of experience, I wanted to focus on defense than offense,” Plassmeyer said. “I just felt like you give them three outs, you give them more.”

The 1982 season became a turning point. Lebanon was 8-15 going into the district tournament but found some momentum.

“I had a sophomore pitcher and a left-hander, a senior who was 130 pounds soaking wet. We threw slow, slow and slower,” Plassmeyer said.

Lebanon won the district championship thanks to a freshman’s winning hit. Days later, the Yellowjackets kept their focus a day after prom, beating Kickapoo in the sectional and Joplin the quarterfinal to advance.

From there, the program really took off.

David Milsap, a former player in 1979 who later led the American Legion team, said Plassmeyer came into his own in the mid-1980s. He saw players respond and elevate their game.

Additionally, Plassmeyer developed good relationships with parents of players. In fact, he would caution dads not to be too hard on their sons, reminding them that the father-son relationship needed to last a lifetime.

The Yellowjackets got one more Final Four for Plassmeyer, with the 2002 team advancing to the semifinals. It included players he had coached since youth baseball.

Even better, Plassmeyer always had the support of his late wife, Rhonda, and their children, Jenny, Jill and Jared.

He has since been inducted into the Missouri Baseball Coaches Association and was Lebanon’s athletic director for nine years until retiring in 2003.

“(The game) treated me well,” Plassmeyer said. “I was fortunate to be at Lebanon for 25 years. Not too many coaches can do that. And we had a lot of good kids.”