If there was a Hall of Fame for catchy names, Toivo Piippo would have been inducted years ago. There isn't, so Piippo will have to settle for a spot in the Astoria High School Hall of Fame, after all, he earned it!

The 1935-1936 hoop season saw the junior in his first season with the varsity. Piippo finished the year as the third highest Fishermen scorer (196 in 32 games), behind high scoring seniors, Ted Sarpola and Henry Kokko.

Astoria played 40 games during Piippo's junior season, closing with a 29-11 record, and advancing to the state tournament.

In one of those regular season games, Piippo poured in 18 points to pace the Fishermen to a 40-35 win over one-time arch-rival, Salem.

At the 1936 state tournament, Astoria opened with a 33-29 win over Portland Interscholastic League champion, Benson. The next night the Fishermen ran into eventual state champion, Corvallis (27-3), losing 42-26.

As senior captain-elect for the 1936-1937 basketball team that recorded a 30-9 record, Piippo led the Fishermen in scoring with 287 points. His career high of 18 points came in a 59-25 win over Athena at the state tournament.

Piippo's biggest night on the local hardwood was leading the Fishermen to a 29-27 double overtime win over the visiting Oregon State Rooks.

With the score knotted 27-27 in the second extra period, Piippo sank a shot from the corner with time running out to give Astoria the upset victory. Piippo led the winners with 12 scores.

As was the custom, Astoria ran over five straight foes at the District Tournament, qualifying them for the state tournament, with Piippo being selected to the all-tournament team.

Piippo and fellow Astoria teammate Earl Sandness moved on to the University of Oregon upon graduation. Both played for the Ducks and were members of the Oregon squad that won the NCAA championship in 1939 over Ohio State. By the time the Ducks had left for the tournament site in Evanston, Illinois, Piippo had suffered a season ending leg injury, and was forced to listen to the game from his dorm in Eugene.

Piippo is best remembered by locals for his exploits as a basketball player, but he also stood out on Friday nights during the fall, as a glue-fingered offensive end and a demon on the defensive side of the line.

As a senior, Piippo and his 1936 Fishermen grid teammates registered one of the most memorable seasons ever by the Purple and Gold.

Astoria finished its schedule with an 8-2-1 record. The Fishermen were 7-0 on the muddy turf of Gyro Field.

Defensively, Astoria set school records that have remained for over sixty seasons, and might last for another sixty. The Fishermen shut out eight opponents, including their final five foes.