District 6 Wrestling Hall of Fame (Todd Irwin)
For the second straight year, District 6 will induct 12 into the Hall of Fame
before the Class AA finals on Feb. 20 and before the Class AAA finals on Feb. 27
at the Altoona Fieldhouse.
Being inducted are Johnstown's George Azar, John McCray and Ed Zimmerman, State
College's Lynn Illingsworth and Andy Lentvorsky, Lock Haven's Dave Johnson and
Frank Rich, Bellefonte's Ken Moyer and Tom Riglin, Philipsburg's Bob Good,
Tyrone's Blair Walk and Hollidaysburg's Julius Walter.
The following is a capsule look at all of the inductees:
George Azar, Johnstown: Azar won two District
6 titles and two Central Northwestern Regional titles, winning at 185 in 1958
and 1959. He captured a state title in 1959 with a 6-4 win over Latrobe's Ed
Pohland in the finals.
Bob Good, Philipsburg: After winning a District 6-9 title and a Central
Northwestern Regional title, Good captured a 16-0 season by beating Carnegie's
Alex Skirpan, 11-8, in the 165-pound finals of the 1951 state tournament.
Skirpan won a state title in 1952. Good pinned Nazareth's Dean Rissmiller in
6:18 in the semifinals.
Lynn Illingsworth, State College: Illingsworth won a District 6-9 title
and became State College's second state champion with a 5-4 riding time victory
over Chartiers Township's Bill Bird in the 185-pound finals of the 1948 state
tournament.
Dave Johnson, Lock Haven: A 2007 inductee into the Pennsylvania Wrestling
Coaches Association Hall of Fame, Johnson won a District 6-9 title at 145 in
1953 and a District 6 title at 154 in 1954, and he followed with Central
Northwestern Regional titles. He won the 1954 state title with a 7-1 victory
over Shamokin's Les Verano in the finals. Johnson went on to become a three-time
EIWA champion at Pitt.
Andy Lentvorsky, State College: A two-time District 6-9 champion and a
1951 Central Northwestern Regional champ, Lentvorsky pulled off a shocker to win
the 154-pound state title in the 1951 tournament, pinning Canonsburg's returning
state champion Joe Solomon in 4:11 in the finals.
John McCray, Johnstown: McCray won two District 6 titles, at 154 in 1956
and at 165 in 1957, and he won a Central Northwestern Regional title in 1957. He
captured Johnstown's first state title with a 6-5 win over Allentown's Al
Rushatz.
Ken Moyer, Bellefonte: Moyer won two District 6 titles, captured the
127-pound state title with an 8-1 win over Hughesville's Jim Reed in 1953 and
finished second as a freshman 95-pounder in 1950, falling to Canonsburg's
eventual three-time state champ Manuel Pihakis in the finals.
Frank Rich, Lock Haven: After winning a District 6-9 title, Rich became
Lock Haven's second state champion by beating West York's Bob King, 2-0, in the
165-pound finals of the 1947 state tournament.
Tom Riglin, Bellefonte: As a junior, Riglin won a District 6-9 title and
then became Bellefonte's first state champion with a 6-2 win over Plymouth's Don
Stubblebine in the 95-pound finals of the 1948 tournament. He won by referee's
decision in the quarterfinals.
Blair Walk, Tyrone: A District 6-9 champion and Central Northwestern
Regional champ, Walk went on to claim Tyrone's third state title by pinning
Abington's Reynolds Pierson in 5:07 of the 138-pound finals in the 1952 state
tournament.
Julius Walter, Hollidaysburg: He lost to Lock Haven's John Harvey in the
District 6-9 finals, but when Harvery suffered an injury the week of the 1948
state tournament, Walter was added to the state field, and he took advantage.
Walter gave up only one point in three bouts and became Hollidaysburg's first
state champion by beating Erie Tech's Tony Starocci, 5-0, in the 154-pound
finals.
Ed Zimmerman, contributor/coach: A 1964 graduate of Johnstown, Zimmerman
coached Richland for 28 years, from 1970-1998, compiling a 201-188-7 record. He
coached Eric Bowser to a state title in 1986 and Jim Bowser to state runner-up
finish in 1989. Zimmerman coached 14 District 6 champions and his team to two
team second-place finishes and was District 6 Class AA Coach of the Year in
1976. He also covered six state tournaments as a sports writer for the
Tribune-Democrat of Johstown.