First induction into Tioga County’s Sports Hall of Fame is this Friday
Thirty of Tioga County’s native sons will be inducted into the county’s first Sports Hall of Fame this Friday, June 27, [1986], at 7:30 p.m. at a banquet in the Youth Center building at the Tioga County Fairgrounds, Whitneyville.
Mansfield University President Rod Ketchner will be master of ceremonies for the dinner.
Five of the 30 inductees were selected from a list of seventeen individuals whose accomplishments in the field of sports have established their importance in county athletic history.
The remaining twenty-five were nominated from five areas of Tioga County: Blossburg, Elkland, Mansfield, Wellsboro and Westfield.
The five “automatics” selected were:
Carl Lindquist of Morris Run, who graduated from
Mansfield State Teachers College in 1941 after a four-year pitching career on
the MSTC baseball team, He began is professional baseball career with the Elmira
Pioneers that same year. From 1943-44 Lindquist played for the Boston Braves;
from 1945-47 for the Milwaukee and for Atlanta from 1948-50. In 1951, he played
for Buffalo, NY and Montgomery, Ala.
Francis J. Kelly of Mansfield played baseball,
basketball and football with MSTC and was on the basketball team when it won the
State Championship in 1926 and 1929. He played professional baseball in Fort
Wayne, Ind., and Dallas, Texas from 1929 through 1932 and in 1933 was with the
Williamsport Grays in the New York-Penn League. It was Kelly who first promoted
the idea of honoring local sports greats, an idea which led to the establishment
of the Hall of Fame.
C. Thomas McMillen, formerly of Mansfield, led
Mansfield High School to a Class B state championship in 1969. He set an
all-time state scoring record and national record for highest percentage of
field goals during his career at Mansfield High. At the University of Maryland,
McMillen set another school scoring record, was chosen Most Valuable Player at
the 1972 National Invitational Tournament and was a member of the 1972 U.S.
Olympic Basketball Team. A Rhodes scholar who played professional basketball in
Italy, McMillen was a first-round NBA draft choice. He has played with the
Buffalo Braves, the New York Knicks, the Atlanta Hawks and the Washington
Bullets.
John J. “Red” Murray, an Arnot native, is
recognized for his outstanding contributions with the New York Giants.
Considered one of the greatest outfielders of his era, Murray played every
inning of every game in three World Series [1911-1913]. He led the National
League in home runs one year and finished second in stolen bases three years.
Edward Russell was an outstanding lineman in
football at Mansfield Normal School and University of Pennsylvania. He played
against the legendary Jim Thorpe, both in college and professional football; and
was head football coach at Mansfield State Teachers College from 1924 to 1931.
Blossburg
The five from the Blossburg area selected for hall-of-fame honors include:
Harold C. Berguson, a native of Arnot, who began
his baseball career with the Blossburg town team at the age of 14. A left-handed
batter, he was a power-hitter, always batting in the No. 4 position with
consistency; and also possessed a powerful throwing arm. Signed by the New York
Yankees in 1941, Berguson played for the Binghamton and Butler farm teams in
1941 and 1942 before entering military service.
Fred W. Johnson, also from Arnot, had a wide
assortment of pitches and was considered hard to hit. At the height of his
pitching career, however, he injured his arm pitching both games of a
double-header. Switched to first base, Johnson’s above average hitting enabled
him to continue as an active player for a number of years.
Louis “Babe” Losleniecki was still out there
with the youngsters showing them how to run the bases even after most players
his age had hung up their spikes. He got his nickname because his hitting
resembled that of another right fielder on the New York Yankees, and his ability
to steal a base or extend a hit into extra bases struck fear into opposing
pitchers.
Lewis W. MacBlane was born in Morris Run, where
he learned the game of baseball and played four years in high school. Following
graduation he played ten years for the Morris Run Miners of the Tri-County
League. Later, MacBlane became an avid golfer, scoring a “hole in one” at the
Mark Twain Golf Course in Elmira.
Charles F. Schultz graduated from Blossburg High
School and went on to Mansfield Normal, where he played baseball and basketball.
From Mansfield, Schultz went to the University of Rochester and played another
year of baseball. Returning to his hometown, he played ten years as an
outfielder and pitcher for the town baseball team as well as participating on
local basketball squads.
Elkland
Lawrence J. Baker pitched for the Elkland Town
Team at age 16, winning 15 of 18 games and throwing a no-hitter at age 17. He
averaged 11 strikeouts for every 9-inning game while hitting over .400. In 1930
he won his first game for Elmira in the NYP League, yielding only 3 hits. Baker
was also well-known in the county as a longtime umpire.
George “Pooch” Davenport, Sr., a former Elkland
native played high school baseball in 1928-30 and was a member of the first
Elkland High School Basketball Team. He played infield for the champion baseball
team from Elkland in the Tri-County League in 1936-37 and played on Elkland’s
first softball team in 1931. In 1942 he organized and coached the Moose Softball
Team.
Gordon L. “Bucky” Freburg of Elkland dominated
the scene on many occasions in the Tri-County Baseball League in the 1930’s. His
team, The Elco Tannery Baseball Nine, won the championship in 1936. In 1938 he
was signed to a professional contract with the St. Louis Cardinals’
organization.
Benjamin L. Marzo, also of Elkland, held the
Elmira YMCA Blackhawks Basketball League scoring record. He broke the previous
record in 1951 with 325 points and the free throw mark with a high of 87. In
addition, Marzo played infield on the champion Tri-County League baseball team
and later played short-stop for Elkland’s softball team. He also coached Little
League and Junior Legion baseball for many years.
Arthur “Art” Watson, a native of Elkland and a
natural southpaw, found his niche in baseball on the pitcher’s mound. In his
junior and senior years in high school he was pitching for the Elkland Town Team
and in 1938 was selected for the Atlantic All-Stars from Tioga County and signed
to play professional baseball. His professional career ended in 1941 with his
entry into the Marine Corps.
Mansfield
Harold “Skeet” Brace was an outstanding baseball
and basketball player both at Mansfield High School and at Mansfield State
College. His major accomplishments, however, came during his career as a high
school basketball coach. At Shinglehouse, Brace’s teams won the district title 8
out of 9 years. Later, at Bradford, his team won 11 district titles in 13 years
and went to the state semi-finals twice. Those teams had a remarkable 218-51
record during his years as coach.
Richard R. Hatfield of Tioga played baseball and
basketball at Williamson High School for four years and at Rio Grande College in
Ohio for two [years]. Picked by the Detroit Tigers baseball team. Dick Hatfield
played with various teams from Class D to AA from 1952-58 and pitched for
various U.S. Air Force teams for four seasons.
Merle E. Stillwell graduated from Mansfield High
School in 1950 with letters in baseball and basketball. He lettered in baseball
and football at Mansfield State College from 1952-56 and served as captain of
the baseball team in his senior year. Stillwell coached nine years of football
and three years of baseball at Walt Whitman High School on Long Island, NY and
was the football coach at Indiana University for five years.
J.J. McMillen made the all-star basketball team
as a junior and senior at Mansfield High School. At the University of Maryland
he played on the freshman team and was a varsity starter for the next three
years. McMillen was selected to the Atlantic Coast Conference All-Star Team and
the NCAA Academic All-American Team in 1967. Drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers
upon graduation. McMillen, brother of Hall of Fame inductee Tom McMillen,
elected to further his education rather than continuing in basketball.
George R. Tomlinson played varsity baseball,
basketball and football at Mansfield High School and basketball in 1949 for
Mansfield State College. In 1952 and 1953, he played basketball for Alfred
University. An avid golfer, Tomlinson won the Corey Creek Golf Championship in
1967, 1969, 1974, 1979 and 1980.
Wellsboro
Silas L. “Sike” Boom, a native of Knoxville,
began his baseball managerial career in 1927 when he moved to Wellsboro, and
that career continued right up until his untimely death in 1946. Boom, who was
noted for encouraging an interest in sports in Wellsboro, had a profound
knowledge of the game of baseball coupled with the ability to impart that
knowledge to his players. He was highly respected by his opponents as well as by
the members of his own teams.
John P. Deibert excelled in baseball, basketball
and football. But is was that last sport that earned him a full four-year
athletic scholarship to Penn State. As a tackle there, Deibert saw action in
bowl games from 1962 to 1964 and was drafted by both the New York Giants and the
Buffalo Bills professional football teams. He chose instead to coach high school
football, where he enjoyed great success.
William M. Johnson won 11 letters in baseball,
basketball and football at Mansfield State from 1946-49 and signed with the St.
Louis Browns football team in 1947. Later, Johnson returned home to Wellsboro,
where he coached Little League for 25 years and saw his 1955 team go to the
state finals. In 1952, his Green Hornet basketball team reached the state
semi-finals and Johnson-coached football teams went undefeated at Wellsboro in
1958 and Corning East in 1970.
Donald “Rusty” Ludlam believed and played by the
adage that “one player doesn’t make a team.” His own teamwork led Wellsboro High
School to two undefeated championship years in junior varsity basketball in 1936
and 1937, two championship years in varsity basketball in 1938 and 1939, and saw
him batting .360 and .400 during his last two years playing varsity baseball.
Hugh S. Niles moved to Wellsboro from his native
Elkland at the beginning of his high school sophomore year and played varsity
baseball, basketball, soccer as well as running track until his graduation from
Wellsboro High School in 1939. During his high school career, he was the
District IV Cross-Country Champion and the Tioga County One-Mile Champion.
Following graduation, Niles went to Bloomsburg University played varsity
basketball, was co-captain of the baseball team and captained the Cross-Country
runners.
Westfield
Russell Bush was a long-time resident of
Knoxville who was noted for his blazing fastball. He pitched for Newark in the
International League, the Johnstown, Amsterdam and Gloversville team in the old
New York State League and for Altoona in the Middle Atlantic League, but a
tryout with the Brooklyn Dodgers failed. Bush died in February 1920.
Wilson J. Streeter captained the Syracuse
University Freshman Cross-Country team and in his sophomore year saw its team
came in second in intercollegiate competition. He won the mile and two-mile
races in his junior year and qualified for the Olympic trials on the west coast
as well as being named most valuable player on the team. During his senior year,
his cross-county team won all its dual meets.
Benn Weeks, a graduate of Westfield High School,
learned the game of tennis while a student at Mansfield State Teachers College
and became known as one of the area’s outstanding players. He is still active in
the sport as well as an excellent swimmer.
Lynn “Pat” Weldman was one of the most
outstanding basketball players ever to come from the Westfield area. In 1930, he
was selected to an All-American Basketball Team following his participation in a
tournament in Westfield that was one of several played throughout the country to
select the team members.
Edward Zurfluh had a great love for all sports
and was an outstanding guard in basketball and short-stop in baseball. Following
his graduation from Westfield High School, he continued to play with town teams,
in particular the Sinclair Oilers. He was also noted as an outstanding
basketball referee in high school competition.
Each of the inductees, or a representative if the inductee is deceased will receive a plaque showing the highlights of his athletic career. A second plaque will be placed on display at the site of the Sports Hall of Fame in the Tioga County Historical Society Annex, 120 Main St., Wellsboro.
Tickets on Sale
Tickets for the banquet can be purchased from the following: Earl Lamberson
- 1-717-638-2906; Howard Sandstrom - 638-2470; Louis Schultz - 638-2849; Molly
Sherman - 1-814-258-7314; Walter Berguson - 1-717-659-5212; Theodore Besanceney
- 1-717-662-3635; Ferris Lutes - 662-2676; Keith Tombs - 1-717-724-3432; Craig
West - 724-3424; Lou Youdas - 724-2752; Fernley Leach - 1-814-367-5160; Frank
Farwell - 367-2319 or Harland Moore - 367-2243.