2021 Quincy Notre Dame Hall of Fame inductee: Joe Terwelp, athlete

(EDITOR’S NOTE: The 2020 and 2021 classes are being inducted into the Quincy Notre Dame Hall of Fame together this year. Terwelp will be inducted on Saturday, Nov. 27 before QND’s boys basketball game.)

Joe Terwelp enjoyed one of the greatest careers of any basketball player in QND history, and he also was an accomplished baseball player, but no Raider ever had a weekend at the state basketball tournament like he did in 2004.

A 2004 graduate of Quincy Notre Dame, Terwelp poured in 27 points in a Class A quarterfinal victory over Pana, then scored 25 against eventual state champion Chicago Leo in the semifinals. He capped his weekend with 18 points in the third-place game victory over Peoria Christian.

Terwelp started his three-year career on the varsity by averaging 11.1 points per game as a sophomore, but his scoring average was just 11.5 points per game as a senior. However, he was surrounded by one of the most talented teams in school history by the time he was a senior, so he sacrificed points to concentrate on rebounding and defense. He finished with 1,070 career points.

At Monmouth College, Terwelp was a three-time all-conference pick, earning first-team honors as a senior. He finished with 1,110 career points, averaging 14.7 points as a sophomore, 16.7 points as a junior and 16 points as a senior. He scored 20 points in a game 20 times, and his career high was 38 points against Grinnell College.

Terwelp lives in Quincy and is an internal auditor for Town and Country Bank. He and his wife, Amber, have three children.