Former Austin high school girls basketball coach Gary Peterson was selected to the Minnesota Girls Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame this past weekend in Northfield.

Peterson, who retired from coaching and teaching in 2012, guided the Packers to state tournament appearances in 2004 and 2008 and he finished his coaching career with a career record of 376-315. He spent 21 of his 33 coaching years with the Packer girls and he led them to four conference titles and the team was section runner up three times.

“You never expect to go into the hall of fame,” Peterson said. “When they called I thought it might be a joke. I was very humbled and honored to go into the hall of fame.”

Peterson is now the Carlton County Commissioner and a basketball official with the Lake Superior Basketball Association. He still misses coaching, but officiating keeps him close to the game he loves.

“It gives me some exercise and it keeps me around the game,” Peterson said. “I know what coaches go through. No ref is going to be perfect and no coach is going to be perfect.”

Peterson graduated from Barnum High School in 1971 and he attended Hibbing Junior College, where he played football and basketball. He transferred and graduated from University of Wisconsin-Superior and he went on to get degrees from University of Minnesota-Duluth and Winona State University.

Peterson and his wife Barb, have three grown children — Gabriel, Amber and Brittany.