“Sports has the ability to unite people — no matter who they are,” Pompeani said. “When sports is involved in a community, it brings everybody together.”

That was certainly the case at the Blair Hall’s 21st induction dinner Saturday, where five new inductees who distinguished themselves in the sports realm as former athletes, coaches and officials were honored before a sellout crowd of 800 people.

The 2026 inductees were former Bishop Guilfoyle Academy and LSU football standout George Geishauser, former longtime area high school football coach Dave Baker, former Bishop Guilfoyle basketball standout Lori (McConnell) Elgin, former longtime NCAA and PIAA basketball official and NCAA officiating evaluator Cathy Cronin-Beam, and current Bishop Guilfoyle girls basketball coach Kristi (Little) Kaack, who earned induction due to her stellar accomplishments as a former player with the Duquesne University women’s basketball program.

Also inducted were the 1995 and 1996 PIAA champion Altoona Area High School girls basketball teams, led by their legendary coach Art Taneyhill.

04/11/26 Blair County Sports Hall of Fame Induction. Cathy Beam speaks.

Altoona native and Saint Francis University graduate Bob Moore, who has made his mark as the former public relations director and current team historian with the National Football League’s Kansas City Chiefs, was the recipient of the 2026 Blair Hall’s Lifetime Achievement Award, and two current high school senior athletes, Altoona High School girls basketball and soccer standout Zaelinh Nguyen-Moore and Bishop Guilfoyle football and basketball standout Jake Kissell, were recognized as recipients of the Hall’s Scholarship Awards, sponsored by Reliance Bank.

As has been the case at all of the previous induction dinners, the honorees expressed their profound gratitude to family members, mentors and coaches for their selfless sacrifice and personal investment.

Moore, whose presenter was Chiefs owner Clark Hunt, has never forgotten his Blair County roots.

“I’m back here tonight where it all began, thank you very much,” Moore said.

Geishauser — who had an NFL tryout with the Oakland Raiders in 1982 — also expressed appreciation for his solid personal foundation growing up in Altoona.

04/11/26 Blair County Sports Hall of Fame Induction. George Geishauser speaks

“I’m extremely honored with my selection into the Blair County Sports Hall of Fame, and I will cherish this night forever,” said Geishauser, who was presented by former longtime Bishop Guilfoyle football coach Tony Lepore. “I think it’s so important that we have role models in our lives, and my first role models were my mother, father and three older brothers.

“I have a great wife, Beth, and we’ve been together for 52 years, since we were sophomores in high school, when I was a football player and she was a cheerleader,” Geishauser said. “She’s been my biggest cheerleader in life, and together we’ve raised three grown children and we have now been grandparents seven times. I refer to them as my home team.”

McConnell-Elgin, who served as a trailblazer by becoming the first area girls basketball player to secure an NCAA Division I basketball scholarship when she joined the University of New Mexico women’s basketball team, was presented by her former Altoona Parochial League coach, Sonny Consiglio.

“I’m much more comfortable in a pair of basketball shorts than I am up here speaking, but I’m truly honored to be inducted into the Blair Hall of Fame,” McConnell-Elgin said.

“My family has always been my foundation,” added McConnell-Elgin, who provided a neat twist by sharing that she and her husband, Jim, had coached the Hoover High School girls basketball team to an Alabama state championship with Jim holding their then-infant son, Scott, in his arms, saying “that is a memory that I will cherish forever.”

Kaack and Cronin-Beam became visibly emotional during their speeches when mentioning their deceased loved ones.

Kaack said that her late father, Todd, was extremely instrumental in her development as an athlete, and more importantly, as a human being.

“I’m so grateful to my parents,” said Kaack, now a mother of four herself with her husband, Adam. “As soon as I started walking, I was shooting at a Fisher Price hoop. My grandparents taught me that my love for Jesus comes before anything, and my parents believed in me even when I didn’t believe in myself.

“They sacrificed so much, and it’s incredibly hard to be standing up here tonight without my dad being present, but tonight is just another example of the importance in my life of his support of me, and his investment in me,” added Kaack, a former Altoona Area High School standout and current Bishop Guilfoyle Academy girls basketball coach who has led the Lady Marauders to three PIAA state championships. Kaack’s Duquesne University women’s basketball coach, Susie McConnell-Serio, served as her presenter.

Cronin-Beam — who became the first official to be inducted into the Blair County Sports Hall of Fame — officiated women’s college basketball for 34 years, including five NCAA tournaments. She has also served as an evaluator of officials for the Big Ten Conference and officiated six PIAA championship games.

Cronin-Beam, a Philadelphia native who moved to Altoona nearly half a century ago — calling it one of the best decisions of her life — met her late husband Ted while the two were officiating high school basketball games together. The couple were married 26 years before Ted died last September.

“Ted was the love of my life who sadly passed away, and I am heartbroken,” Cronin-Beam — whose presenter was longtime NFL official Gene Steratore — said through tears. “I know that Ted is here in spirit tonight, and he’s my guardian angel who is watching over me.”

The Blair Hall also recognized five late distinguished members — inductees Wayne “Buddy” Geis, Steve Taneyhill and Dick Johnston, as well as former Hall president and nationally-renowned business icon Steve Sheetz, and former longtime Altoona Mirror sports editor and writer, and Lifetime Achievement Award recipient Jim Lane — who all passed away within the last 14 months.

Baker — who served as Central’s head football coach until he retired a few years ago at the age of 79 — served an eye-catching 58 straight years as an area football coach, including 44 as a head coach — 31 seasons at tiny Williamsburg High School, which is now in a football co-op with Juniata Valley, and 13 at Central. Former Williamsburg High athletic standout Christian Appleman served as Baker’s presenter.

“I am a Blair County guy, always,” said Baker, who has celebrated 65 years of marriage with his wife, Nancy. “Everything that Nancy and I have ever done has been in and about Blair County, and therefore, this induction means a great deal to me.”

While there were many somber and sad moments in Saturday’s presentations, the night was not without its moments of levity.

Pomepani — who was celebrating a birthday Saturday — provided one of the best after congratulating Baker and his wife on their 65 years of marriage.

“Wow, what’s the over-under on that?” quipped Pompeani. “A lot of them today don’t last even 10 years.”

ESPN sportscaster Hannah Storm served as the event’s guest speaker and captured the atmosphere surrounding the evening well.

“I have never been to Altoona before, but there is a real sense of community here,” Storm said. “And community and teamwork make sports so special.”

04/11/26 Blair County Sports Hall of Fame Induction. Schlolarship winner. Zaelinh Nguyen-Moore speaks