{"id":270707,"date":"2026-08-23T13:24:08","date_gmt":"2026-08-23T13:24:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/270707\/"},"modified":"2026-08-23T13:24:08","modified_gmt":"2026-08-23T13:24:08","slug":"nepa-hall-of-fame-class-of-2026-announced-will-be-inducted-oct-4-scranton-times-tribune","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/270707\/","title":{"rendered":"NEPA HALL OF FAME: Class of 2026 announced, will be inducted Oct. 4 \u2013 Scranton Times-Tribune"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Basketball coach Andrew Kettel receives the Bill Howerton Exemplary Service...\" class=\"lazyload size-article_inline\" data- src=\"https:\/\/www.thetimes-tribune.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/STT-L-HOWERTON2-0302.jpg?w=620\"  bad-src=\"data:image\/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns=\" http:=\"\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Basketball coach Andrew Kettel receives the Bill Howerton Exemplary Service Award from Howerton\u2019s nephew Chris Szewczyk at the fourth annual Media Day for Lackawanna League baseball and softball teams Sunday at PNC Field. In the background are Howerton\u2019s daughter Maureen and North Pocono baseball coach Brian Jardine, founder of the Bill Howerton K Cancer organization.\n<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Katie Dammer of Abington Heights runs off the starting line...\" class=\"lazyload size-article_inline\" data- src=\"https:\/\/www.thetimes-tribune.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/STT-L-KATIEDAMMER-0823.jpg?w=620\"  bad-src=\"data:image\/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns=\" http:=\"\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Katie Dammer of Abington Heights runs off the starting line during the Class 3A race at the PIAA Cross Country Championships in Hershey in November 2017.\n<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Lakeland quarterback Evan Kraky.\" class=\"lazyload size-article_inline\" data- src=\"https:\/\/www.thetimes-tribune.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/STT-L-allquarterteam-03.jpg?w=620\"  bad-src=\"data:image\/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns=\" http:=\"\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Lakeland quarterback Evan Kraky.\n<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Kayleigh Semion of Dunmore drives against Neumann-Goretti\u2019s Alisha Kebbe during...\" class=\"lazyload size-article_inline\" data- src=\"https:\/\/www.thetimes-tribune.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/STT-L-KAYLEIGHSEMION-0823.jpg?w=620\"  bad-src=\"data:image\/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns=\" http:=\"\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Kayleigh Semion of Dunmore drives against Neumann-Goretti\u2019s Alisha Kebbe during the PIAA Class 2A girls basketball quarterfinals in March 2015.\n<\/p>\n<p>Show Caption<\/p>\n<p>1 of 4<\/p>\n<p>Basketball coach Andrew Kettel receives the Bill Howerton Exemplary Service Award from Howerton\u2019s nephew Chris Szewczyk at the fourth annual Media Day for Lackawanna League baseball and softball teams Sunday at PNC Field. In the background are Howerton\u2019s daughter Maureen and North Pocono baseball coach Brian Jardine, founder of the Bill Howerton K Cancer organization.\n<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#\" class=\"icon-enlarge mng-gallery-fullscreen-expand\" aria-label=\"Expand fullscreen slideshow\">Expand<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Three coaches are part of the 11-member Class of 2026 for the Northeastern Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame.<\/p>\n<p>Scranton Prep girls basketball coach Bob Beviglia, boys basketball coach Andrew Kettel and Elk Lake cross country coach Will Squier are among those to be inducted during the annual ceremony Sunday, Oct. 4 at 5 p.m. at Fiorelli\u2019s in Peckville.<\/p>\n<p>The rest of the induction class includes Abington Heights runner Katie Dammer; baseball, football and basketball official Al Finegan; Scranton Central golfer James Gordon; Lakeland quarterback Evan Kraky; the late Shirley McLaughlin, a field hockey and basketball official; Jack Ott of Riverside football; Dunmore basketball player Kayleigh Semion; and bowler and softball player Bruce Smallacombe.<\/p>\n<p>John Davies, former public address announcer at Lackawanna County Stadium, is recipient of the Tom \u201cDoc\u201d Doherty Service Award, while Times-Tribune Executive Editor Larry Holeva is recipient of the John McCormick Media Award. This is the first year names have been placed on the service and media awards.<\/p>\n<p>Beviglia has a career record of 240-53 in 11 seasons. He led the Classics to their fourth straight District 2 Class 4A title and a berth in the PIAA Class 4A semifinals, earning him Times-Tribune Coach of the Year honors for a fourth time. His teams won eight consecutive Lackawanna League Division I championships from 2018-25.<\/p>\n<p>Kettel coached at Lackawanna Trail from 2007-2013, had a record of 77-70 and led the Lions to the Lackawanna League Division III title in 2011. He then went to Scranton Prep and compiled a record of 202-56 from 2013-2023, winning three Lackawanna League and eight District 2 championship. He also coached at Keystone College from 2023-25 and is an assistant at Abington Heights. Kettel also organized the local Coaches vs. Cancer program in 2007 and it has helped raise $4 million to date.<\/p>\n<p>Squier turned Elk Lake into a cross country powerhouse. He has 745 wins with the boys program, three PIAA championships \u2014 including last season \u2014 and one state runner-up finish. He has 697 wins, two state titles and five state runners-up with the girls program. Many of his runners have earned all-state and Lackawanna League Runner of the Year honors.<\/p>\n<p>Dammer was a standout at Abington Heights, earning nine state medals \u2014 four cross country, four outdoor track and one indoor track. She was a seven-time first-team all-state selection. Holder of school, conference and district records, she was a two-time Times-Tribune Performer of the Year and three-time All-Region selection in cross country and track. In 2018, she was chosen Times-Tribune Female Athlete of the Year. After graduation, she went on to Georgetown University, where she captained a Big East championship cross country team and qualified for the NCAA Championships in cross country and track and field.<\/p>\n<p>Finegan officiated high school football for 50 years, high school and college baseball for 40 years, high school basketball for 35 years and high school softball for 10 years, working many league, district and state playoff games in each sport. He began working college baseball games in 1985 at the Division I, II and III levels. In 1996, he did the NCAA Division II World Series in Montgomery, Alabama. He also worked games involving the U.S. Olympic team, as well as Japanese, Korean and Canadian national teams.<\/p>\n<p>Gordon formed the golf team at Scranton Central and represented the school at the PIAA Championships in 1959 and 1960. He also formed the golf team at Keystone College in 1960, then went on to Post College and won numerous tournaments there. He was the Griffiths Air Force Base champion in 1968. He won the Skyline Golf Course Buddy Tournament in 1978 and Cimoch Memorial in 1983. He was a five-time champion in the Industrial Golf League and at the Lackawanna County Tournament, he posted 18 top-10 finishes, including five runners-up.<\/p>\n<p>Kraky had a career record of 36-6 as starting quarterback for Lakeland. He broke the state record for career passing yards with 7,447 and threw a LIAA-record 93 touchdown passes. He was a two-time Associated Press All-State selection, including Small School Player of the Year in 2001.<\/p>\n<p>McLaughlin began officiating field hockey in 1953 and did so for 67 years at the high school and collegiate levels. She also worked basketball games for 30 years. She was recognized by the PIAA for her 50 years of officiating in field hockey with a plaque that hangs on the PIAA Wall of Fame. She died Dec. 26, 2022, two days shy of her 90th birthday.<\/p>\n<p>Ott was an all-state linebacker at Riverside om 1973-74 and went on to play at Potomac State Junior College in 1974-75, earning all-conference and all-region honors as a freshman. He also played basketball at Riverside, was a first-team Lackawanna League all-star and member of the team that reached the state semifinals in 1971. He also has coached football at his alma mater as a defensive assistant and head coach from 1999-2001.<\/p>\n<p>Semion totaled 1,323 points, 492 rebounds, 364 assists, 348 steals and 238 3-pointers in 116 games at Dunmore. She helped the Lady Bucks win three consecutive District 2 Class 2A titles. She was a two-time Times-Tribune All-Region selection, including Player of the Year in 2015. As a senior, she was Lackawanna League Division III Player of the Year and second-team all-state in Class 2A.<\/p>\n<p>Smallacombe was a standout on the lanes, winning 16 league championships, eight league high-game awards and four league high-average awards. In 2013, he was invited to bowl at the PBA Masters Tournament. He also excels on the diamond, starting in the Jermyn\/Mayfield at the age of 17. He was on teams that won numerous league championships and three state tournament titles. He still plays in two leagues at age 72.<\/p>\n<p>Tickets for the Northeastern Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame induction ceremony cost $75 and go on sale Monday until Sept. 25. Contact Bob Walsh at 570-346-2228 or Jerry Valonis at 570-498-9461.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Basketball coach Andrew Kettel receives the Bill Howerton Exemplary Service Award from Howerton\u2019s nephew Chris Szewczyk at the&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":270708,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[178,180,179,726],"class_list":["post-270707","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-scranton","tag-scranton","tag-scranton-headlines","tag-scranton-news","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/270707","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=270707"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/270707\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/270708"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=270707"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=270707"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=270707"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}