By The Indiana Gazette
Eight individuals who made their marks in baseball, basketball, boxing football, track and field and administration will be inducted into the Indiana County Sports Hall of Fame in the spring.
The Class of 2017 consists of Frank Berzansky and Ed Kozar, who were longtime assistant football coaches at Blairsville; J.T. Yard, who was a baseball All-American and Indiana County League standout; Mike Hilliard, a record-setting running back in high school and college; John Riggle, an all-conference linebacker at the Division I level; Kathy Sherry Newquist , who was a standout basketball player at Indiana High and IUP; Jim Klyap, who was a longtime teacher, coach and administrator at Purchase Line; and William Buggey, who was a world-class boxer in the early 20th century. Buggey will be inducted posthumously.
“This is an outstanding class that consists of individuals who represented their schools and communities in the highest order, and in most cases, for decades dedicated a large part of their lives to Indiana County sports,” Doug Steve, Hall of Fame president, said. “It is an honor to inducted these eight outstanding individuals into the Hall of Fame.”
The 34th annual induction banquet will be held Sunday, May 21, at 5:30 p.m. at the Rustic Lodge in Indiana. Tickets, which are $35, will be available in April at The Indiana Gazette and from Hall of Fame board members.
Following is a look at each of the members of the Class of 2017:
FRANK BERZANSKY: Perhaps best known as an assistant football coach from 1988 to 2006 on conference championship teams at Blairsville High School, Berzansky had a hand in various successful programs in the community. He ran the Blairsville Recreation Department youth basketball program in the late 1980s and early ‘90s, and that was the building block for high school teams that won two district championships and went 30-1 in 1993-94. He also coached youth baseball and was a standout player in the Indiana County League. A three-sport standout at Penns Manor in the mid- to late-1960s, he went on to play football at Edinboro, where he was a kicker and punter.
WILLIAM BUGGEY: The late patriarch of a family that remains active in boxing, Buggey rose swiftly through the featherweight rankings in the 1920s to become one of Pennsylvania’s most prominent fighters. He fought five world champions and competed once for a world title, all the while doing so under the often-used moniker Young Terry McGovern. Buggey also competed in the first pro boxing match in Indiana County, a bout he won at the Indiana Armory.
MIKE HILLIARD: One in a long line of standout running backs at Homer-Center High School, Hilliard still holds the single-season school record of 1,657 yards, which he set in 1998. He finished with 2,330 yards in his career. Hilliard went on to play at Duquesne University from 1999 to 2003 and broke out as a junior, rushing for 2,854 yards and 29 touchdowns over his final two seasons. He holds the single-season school record with 1,544 yards and the single-game school record with 323 yards. He also holds the single-game record for rushing touchdowns with five and the single-season record with 15. His career numbers of 3,188 rushing yards and 32 touchdowns rank third in school history.
JIM KLYAP: A teacher, coach and director of athletics for a combined for 46 years at Purchase Line High School, Klyap was inducted into the school’s Red Dragon Hall of Fame in 2009. During his tenure, he coached football, track and basketball, and his 1974 basketball team went 21-1. As athletic director, he oversaw the addition of baseball, softball and cross country to the athletic program and the construction of a baseball field and an all-weather track. Klyap also served the Appalachian Conference and District 6 in various capacities and remains active as a game manager and host for teams visiting IUP’s Kovalchick Convention and Athletic Complex. He also played two years of basketball at IUP and with the Indiana ACs and played baseball in the C&I League.
ED KOZAR: A longtime fixture at Blairsville High School, Kozar coached the defense on teams that won six conference championships between 1974 and ’86. Though best known as an assistant football coach, Kozar oversaw the track and field program as head coach and led the Bobcats to District 6 championships in 1996 and ’97as well as four conference championships. Kozar played college football at Slippery Rock and also served as an assistant coach at Derry, his high school alma mater.
JOHN RIGGLE: A standout athlete at Elders Ridge High School, Riggle was a three-time all-county selection and played in the Big 33 Game as a senior in 1967. From there, he went on to play linebacker at Georgia Tech under Bud Carson. Slowed by an injury in his college career, he had a tremendous junior season, ranking second on the team with 104 tackles and earning All-Southland Independent recognition.
KATHY SHERRY NEWQUIST: At 5-foot-11, Sherry Newquist emerged as one of the driving forces in Indiana High’s run to the District 6 basketball championship during a 19-3 season in 1976. She went on to play at IUP, and in 1976-77 she posted a double-double, averaging 13.6 points and 11.8 rebounds per game. The rebounding average ranks second in school history. She went on to coach at Marion Center High School and oversaw the Stingers’ early run in a 163-game winning streak in conference games.
J.T. YARD: Yard was always one of the best players on the field wherever he played baseball. A standout at Apollo-Ridge High School, he went on to play at Point Park, where he was a three-time All-American and the 1991 NAIA District 18 Player of the Year. A fixture on West Lebanon teams in the Indiana County League for parts of 24 years, he helped lead the franchise to 16 regular-season and 14 league titles. He was a .434 career hitter with 102 home runs and 394 RBIs. He remains active in local baseball as the manager of Young Township’s Youth Legion program.
