Two standout athletes from the 1990s and a longtime coach have been selected to be inducted into the Newton High School Athletic Hall of Fame.
Former NHS three-sport athletes Chris Jones and Muadianvita Kazadi, both 1992 grads, along with former Railer cross country and track coach Ron Capps will be inducted this fall.
Kazadi was a first-team All-Ark Valley League selection in football. He also was a Shrine Bowl selection. He helped lead Newton to its first-ever Class 5A state playoff berth, reaching the semifinals. He was named the team’s defensive player of the year.
Kazadi also competed in basketball and track at Newton. He helped lead Newton to its first AVL track title.
He went on to play football at the University of Tulsa, where he was the first Newton High School athlete to be drafted by the National Football League.
Selected by the St. Louis Rams in the sixth round, he played in 12 career NFL games. He also played professionally in Europe and Canada.
He went on to be a stength coach for the Kansas City Chiefs. He is the assistant athletic director for athletic performance at Baylor University.
Jones played basketball, football and track at Newton.
In football, he was a first-team all-state and All-Ark Valley League selection. He was a Shrine Bowl selection, and he helped lead the Railers to its first-ever Class 5A playoff berth, advancing to the state semifinals. He was named the team’s offensive player of the year as a senior.
He was a second-team All-AVL basketball selection in 1992.
He was a state track qualifier in 1990 and 1992.
Jones went on to play football at The University of Kansas and was a starting linebacker in 1995 and 1996.
Capps spent 21 years as the Railer cross country coach and 11 years as the girls’ track coach.
He coached cross country from 1975 to 1995, winning three AVL girls’ titles and three AVL boys’ titles. His girls’ teams were second in the AVL five other times while the boys took second twice.
His girls’ teams finished fifth at state three times while the boys’ teams finished third at state twice and fourth three other times.
As girls’ track coach, his team won the AVL in 1978 and finished second three other times. His teams had a second-place regional finish and two third-place finishes. His teams finished sixth at state in 1980 and seventh in 1976 and 1978.
Capps also coached freshman and sophomore football, as well as intramural football and basketball, coaching a total of almost 2,000 athletes.
He also worked more than 2,000 sporting events in basketball, football, swimming, track, baseball, softball, wrestling and soccer, serving as a timer, announcer, starter, clerk and crowd supervision.
