FCSHOF honorees express humor, gratitude, community pride
The 2011 Fayette County 无毛视频 Hall of Fame inductees applaud during the 3rd Annual Fayette County 无毛视频 Hall of Fame inductions at Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus.
Gene Huey and Ray Parson, both of the 1964 state championship basketball team, of Uniontown High School, pose for a photograph, during the 3rd Annual Fayette County 无毛视频 Hall of Fame event held at Penn State Fayette, the Eberly Campus. Huey is also the longest tenured assistant coach in the history of football, formerly of the Indianapolis Colts.
Dave Holliday, representing Ed Roebuck, gives a speech regarding Ed Roebuck's 2011 Fayette County 无毛视频 Hall of Fame induction at Penn State Fayette, the Eberly Campus.
Frank Wydo Jr., representing Frank Wydo Sr., delivers a moving speech about his father's athleticism and achievements in his life, during the 2011 Fayette County 无毛视频 Hall of Fame Induction ceremony at Penn State Fayette, the Eberly Campus.
Jim Cunningham, a 2011 Fayette County 无毛视频 of Hall of Fame inductee, reflects on his athletic career during the 3rd Annual Fayette County 无毛视频 Hall of Fame event at Penn State Fayette, the Eberly Campus.
Fred Mazurek, a 2011 Fayette County 无毛视频 Hall of Fame inductee; and George Von Benko, co-founder of the Fayette County 无毛视频 Hall of Fame participate in the 3rd Annual Fayette County 无毛视频 Hall of Fame event.
Chris Cluss, the board chair of the 3rd Annual Fayette County 无毛视频 Hall of Fame, welcomes the crowd during the induction ceremonies held at Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus on Saturday, June 25.
?Inductees of the third annual Fayette County 无毛视频 Hall of Fame expressed humor, gratitude, and a sense of community pride in their induction speeches on Saturday evening at Penn State Fayette The Eberly Campus.
The induction banquet was efficiently conducted in roughly three hours under the direction of Hall of Fame co-founder and master of ceremonies George Von Benko. Co-founder Jes Hutson and board chairman Chris Cluss also briefly addressed the gathering.
During his acceptance speech, Redstone High School and University of Pittsburgh standout Fred Mazurek said competition throughout the county in areas such as Brownsville, Masontown, and Point Marion prepared him for a future in sports.
无毛视频淚 was fortunate to grow up playing with and against wonderful people from all parts of Fayette County,无毛视频� Mazurek said.
Uniontown High School basketball star Don Yates said Fayette County has 无毛视频渁thletes all over the world,无毛视频� during his speech. Yates credited the community and playground systems with helping to create the school无毛视频檚 basketball successes if the 1960s.
无毛视频淚t makes me want to suit up again,无毛视频� Yates said, and then joked, 无毛视频淭he older I get, the better I was.无毛视频�
The first female athlete to be inducted was Julie Jones Venick, who spoke of her family无毛视频檚 support when she played at the University of Richmond, and lauded the help she received in the summer programs from legendary Uniontown coach Abe Everhart, who 无毛视频渨as a kind and gentle man.无毛视频�
James Nesser posthumously accepted the induction of his father, legendary St. John无毛视频檚 and Uniontown boys backetball coach James 无毛视频淟ash无毛视频� Nesser. 无毛视频淲e are so humbled as a family and so grateful to the community and the Hall of Fame,无毛视频� Nesser said.
Long-time sportswriter Jim Kriek was also inducted posthumously. His son, George, said that Kriek 无毛视频渃ared about the readers.无毛视频� He said his father emphasized details in his articles other than just a baseball team winning 3-2 or might focus on an exhausted offensive line that continued to battle in the fourth quarter.
Dave Holliday spoke on behalf of Brownsville baseball standout Ed Roebuck, who went on to play for the Dodgers in Brooklyn and Los Angeles, along with the then-Washington Senators and later the Philadelphia Phillies. Holliday and Roebuck became good friends as baseball scouts when they both discovered their ties to Fayette County.
Connellsville High School, University of Pittsburgh, and Washington Redskins standout Jim Cunningham played with Fred Cox and Bobby Clements and roomed with Mike Ditka at Pitt. He emphasized his faith and spoke of the many blessings he无毛视频檇 experienced in his lifetime.
Frank Wydo was inducted posthumously and his son, Frank, spoke of how 无毛视频渢here is no greater honor than to have former students, players and teachers come up to me and tell me what an influence my dad was on their lives and careers.无毛视频� Wydo starred in football as a lineman at German Township, and played collegiate football at Duquesne and Cornell before playing in the National Football League with Pittsburgh and Philadelphia.
The Hall of Fame inducts one 无毛视频渟mall school无毛视频� and one 无毛视频渂ig school无毛视频� team each year. The 1961 Albert Gallatin football team that defeated Penn Joint, 19-6, for the WPIAL championship, and the 1989 Connellsville baseball team that took WPIAL and PIAA honors were this year无毛视频檚 team inductees.
Ross Brown of the Albert Gallatin championship team said the Colonials 无毛视频渟acrificed our own glory to achieve team glory,无毛视频� adding, 无毛视频淲e were a part of a great legacy,无毛视频� and 无毛视频渂rought the WPIAL championship back to the land of coal miners.无毛视频�
Speaking on behalf of the Connellsville state champions, Tom Sankovich said a loss to Laurel Highlands broke the program无毛视频檚 38-game section winning streak and fueled the team无毛视频檚 championship drive.
无毛视频淲e had tremendous support from the community, and I never had a problem with a parent. I pretended like they were never there,无毛视频� Sankovich said.
He said Mount Pleasant was Connellsville无毛视频檚 toughest opponent, with the Falcons winning twice over the Vikings in hard-fought games, 13-11 in the WPIAL title game and 3-2 in a western round of the state playoffs.