EXCERPTS:
The first 24 athletes inducted into the county's Hall of Fame on Sunday included the following:
*E. Leonard (Joe) Garland, a high school and semiprofessional coach, died in 1981. He was credited with starting the Coaldale-Lansford football rivalry. He coached football at Lansford High School between 1922 and 1926. He also coached at Mauch Chunk Catholic High School in 1929 and St. Ann's Catholic High School, Lansford. He was coach of the semiprofessional team the Mauch Chunk Blue Stars.
*Daniel Sneddon of Coaldale. Sneddon recorded the longest run in the archives of the Coaldale-Lansford High School football series with an 80-yard return of a punt during a 1925 game. Sneddon, who lives in Hometown, was a four-letter star in football, baseball, basketball and track between 1921 and 1926.
*The late Walt Macenka of Coaldale. Macenka was signed by the New York Giants of the National Football League in 1947.
He was considered an outstanding grid lineman at Coaldale High School and became a standout at Temple University. He was also an outstanding member of his school's track squad for four years.
*George T. Welsh, head coach of the University of Virginia football team, who went from Coaldale High and Wyoming Seminary to the U.S. Naval Academy, where he earned six varsity letters in football and baseball.
Welsh was a three-year starting quarterback and finished third in the Heisman Trophy balloting after leading the nation in passing and total offense in 1955. He was an assistant coach at Penn State University under Joe Paterno and was head coach at the Naval Academy, where he led his team to the most recorded wins in the academy's history.
*Ann Marie (Kosciolek) Clausius, the first woman inductee, played four years of varsity basketball at Marian High School. By the end of her athletic career at Marian, Clausius had scored a total of 2,164 points. She also was a standout softball and field hockey player at Marian.
*Hugh "Wink" Gallagher, a teacher and coach at Marian High School. Gallagher, who lives in Tamaqua, was an athlete at St. Jerome's High School, Tamaqua, and LaSalle College in Philadelphia before he began coaching at Marian in 1954.
FULL ARTICLE:
Jack Dolbin, who played with the Denver Broncos professional football team and returned to his hometown of Pottsville, may have best summed up the importance of the new Carbon County Sports Hall of Fame.
Dolbin, a speaker at the organization's induction ceremony Sunday, described how sports is a frontier where men still prove themselves by their talent and ability alone. No political connections will help. Affirmative action does not apply.
But often, he said, when a sports career ends, an athlete fades into anonymity.
"It's somewhat encouraging to see a community dedicate themselves to retaining the memory of people who have played on the sports field," he said.
Initial attempts to create a chapter of the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame in Jim Thorpe floundered, but about a year ago, Danny McGinley, the chapter's first president, and a few others buckled down.
They held meetings from Tamaqua to Palmerton, asking representatives from each community to nominate two living athletes and one athlete who had died.
McGinley said officials with the state Sports Hall of Fame suggested that the Schuylkill County communities be included with Carbon County because they had been part of the Black Diamond League, a basketball and baseball program established in the 1950s. "I thought the athletes around here deserved to have the recognition," said Danny McGinley, who played a major role in establishing the county organization.
The first 24 athletes inducted into the county's Hall of Fame on Sunday were the following:
*Ron Esrang, a professional baseball player from Jim Thorpe. Esrang retired as postmaster of Jim Thorpe after signing his first minor league contract in 1951. He was assigned to play with the Canadian American League in Rome, N.Y. In 1952, he played for Harrisburg in the Inter-State League.
*Lawrence B. Morris Jr., a standout football, baseball and track star who served as superintendent of the Jim Thorpe Area Schools until 1970.
Morris was a star athlete at Perkiomen Prep School and Gettysburg College. One of his key successes was a 40-yard drop-kick field goal that beat Villanova, 3-0. He coached at East Mauch Chunk High School and the Mauch Chunk Catholic High School. He died in 1982.
*Michael Hodor graduated from Mauch Chunk Catholic High School in 1934 as a football, basketball, baseball and track standout.
He was an official with the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association for 10 years and helped establish the first Catholic Youth Organization basketball program in Jim Thorpe. He also was on the Board of Education in Jim Thorpe for four six-year terms.
*E. Leonard (Joe) Garland, a high school and semiprofessional coach, died in 1981. He was credited with starting the Coaldale-Lansford football rivalry. He coached football at Lansford High School between 1922 and 1926. He also coached at Mauch Chunk Catholic High School in 1929 and St. Ann's Catholic High School, Lansford. He was coach of the semiprofessional team the Mauch Chunk Blue Stars.
*William Braucher of Palmerton coached basketball at Palmerton High School for 12-1/2 years. He compiled a 210-60 win-loss record. He also produced three consecutive Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association District 11 title teams between 1932 and 1934.
*Steve Honzo of Palmerton. Honzo officiated at high school and semiprofessional basketball games. In 1955, he was accepted into the Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference. He also worked the Atlantic Coast Conference and was alternate in the southern and southeastern conferences. In 1959, he was selected to work his first National Collegiate Athletic Association regional tournament and his first National Invitational Tournament. He advanced to the NCAA Final Four seven times.
*Daniel Sneddon of Coaldale. Sneddon recorded the longest run in the archives of the Coaldale-Lansford High School football series with an 80-yard return of a punt during a 1925 game. Sneddon, who lives in Hometown, was a four-letter star in football, baseball, basketball and track between 1921 and 1926.
*The late Walt Macenka of Coaldale. Macenka was signed by the New York Giants of the National Football League in 1947.
He was considered an outstanding grid lineman at Coaldale High School and became a standout at Temple University. He was also an outstanding member of his school's track squad for four years.
*George T. Welsh, head coach of the University of Virginia football team, who went from Coaldale High and Wyoming Seminary to the U.S. Naval Academy, where he earned six varsity letters in football and baseball.
Welsh was a three-year starting quarterback and finished third in the Heisman Trophy balloting after leading the nation in passing and total offense in 1955. He was an assistant coach at Penn State University under Joe Paterno and was head coach at the Naval Academy, where he led his team to the most recorded wins in the academy's history.
*Ann Marie (Kosciolek) Clausius, the first woman inductee, played four years of varsity basketball at Marian High School. By the end of her athletic career at Marian, Clausius had scored a total of 2,164 points. She also was a standout softball and field hockey player at Marian.
*Hugh "Wink" Gallagher, a teacher and coach at Marian High School. Gallagher, who lives in Tamaqua, was an athlete at St. Jerome's High School, Tamaqua, and LaSalle College in Philadelphia before he began coaching at Marian in 1954.
*Harold Frey, a former Lehighton resident who lives in El Sobrante, Calif., lettered in gymnastics, and track and field before his graduation from Lehighton High School in 1942. Frey taught physical education and coached gymnastics and soccer at the University of Illinois in Chicago for 11 years. He was captain of gymnastics at Penn State for three years. He also won the Eastern Intercollegiate All-Around title and is considered a world champion.
*John Chuckran, a Lansford native, is a former assistant coach and administrative assistant to Penn State football coach Paterno. Chuckran was a wrestling and football coach at Allegheny College between 1959 and 1964 and has been inducted into the college's Hall of Fame. He has also worked as director of athletics at the University of Rhode Island.
*Michael Holovak, executive vice president and general manager of the Houston Oilers in the National Professional Football League. He started his athletic career at Lansford High School and became an All-America football player at Boston College.
He played with the Philadelphia Eagles between 1940 and 1942, and is a member of the Orange Bowl Hall of Fame.
*Paul West, a Weatherly resident, was named Class B All-State in basketball when he was attending Weatherly High School in 1948. He led the team to several regional championships during his career.
*Frank Romano, also of Weatherly, was considered a stellar basketball player during his days at Weatherly High School. Romano still holds the school's career scoring record with 1,973 points. He also holds the season scoring record with 877 points and most points (54) scored in a game against White Haven High School in 1953.
*George Bibighaus of Lehighton was considered a three-sport sensation at Lehighton High School between 1937 and 1941. He was a varsity end in football, a varsity center in basketball and a varsity first baseman in baseball. He continued his career at Muhlenberg College, Allentown, and in 1946, he became the first team member with the Little All-America squad, during which time he led the nation in pass receptions.
*Lewis A. Ginder was considered a football, basketball, track and gymnastics star as a student at Lehighton High School in the 1920s. He returned to Lehighton to coach football and basketball at the high school for 17 years. He also coached track for 22 years and gymnastics for 41 years.
*Bill Mlkvy was Palmerton High School's first All-State basketball player in 1948. He played with the former Philadelphia Warriors in the National Basketball Association after being named an All-American at Temple University. Mlkvy still holds six Owl records, including one for scoring 73 points in a single game. In 1951, his performances earned him College Player of the Year.
*Elmer Valo of Palmerton played baseball in Philadelphia, Brooklyn and Los Angeles during a 20-year career in the major league. He finished with a batting average of 0.282. He also played three years in the minors.
*Wilbur "Mugsy" Derby of Summit Hill was a member of the community's first football, basketball, baseball and track teams. He was a member of the 1923-24 Carbon-Schuylkill championship basketball team and received 12 high school letters. His football career was cut short at Temple University, Philadelphia, after a serious knee injury.
*Michael McCullion played football, baseball and basketball as a student at Summit Hill High School, and he was considered a stellar baseball player later at Temple University.
*John "Bugs" Bonner earned 16 letters as a member of the football, basketball and baseball teams at Summit Hill High School. He also earned 11 letters at Temple University, where he was captain of the university's football squad in 1930.
*Agostinho Guedes of Palmerton left Portugal in 1946 as a middle/light heavyweight champion. After settling in Palmerton, he continued boxing until 1951 during bouts that were usually held at the Allentown Fairgrounds.\
Source: http://articles.mcall.com/1991-05-28/news/2797114_1_jim-thorpe-area-schools-athlete-baseball-and-track
