Withers left mark on Altoona gridiron

August 31, 2024

Many of us were in awe when he was out on the gridiron. Some of us marveled at how he excelled from the Altoona Parochial League, through Roosevelt Junior High School and dominated on the field for the Altoona Mountain Lions. He led Altoona to the 1969 WPIAL championship game and was recognized by the Pennsylvania All-state football team, playing in the Big 33 Classic before moving onto West Virginia University. Fortunately, I personally am able to say that I was one of his teammates at both St. Mary’s Parochial Grade School and later at West Virginia. What an awesome ...

Area support for Shackley appreciated

July 13, 2024

Over the past four years, our community has had the opportunity to witness the performance of arguably one of its greatest-ever athletes — swimmer Leah Shackley of Rainsburg. The incoming North Carolina State swimmer who earned a full athletic scholarship has a list of accomplishments that are too many to mention here, but a sampling includes six PIAA titles, including the fastest female high school swimmer in PA history in both the backstroke and butterfly. And most recently competing in her second USA Olympic Trials where her best finish included a finals appearance and a ...

Semi-pro league should be local option

June 8, 2024

Altoona should consider switching the Greater City Baseball League from recreational to semi-pro. In 2023 alone, according to the website Sports Advisory Group.com, the average revenue for each of the nine independent leagues nationally was $16.7 million. Just this year a new league called the All-American Baseball Association will attempt to form with six teams, 129 followers and with the help of GoFundMe. Altoona already has an established league with six teams, 127 players on the rosters and sponsors who support the league. The league also has fields available in Veterans ...

Litwalk stood for all the right things basketball’

May 18, 2024

This is a followup to Neil Rudel’s column last weekend on the passing of former Greater Johnstown High School boys basketball Paul Litwalk. I met a slew of coaches over my years, and more than a few allowed the heat of competition to bring out a darker side. I saw Litwalk upset with officials, and I saw him be stern with his players, but I can never recall him being anything but a gentleman on the court and a sincerely kind and pleasant man I always enjoyed talking with off the court. I remember a scuffle between a Bishop Guilfoyle player and Johnstown player one year when the ...

Hall missed chance to honor Rusnak

May 11, 2024

Hall missed chance to honor Rusnak On this sunny spring day, we will pay our last respects to coach Marty Rusnak. There will be former wrestlers, students, friends and family members present to remember the man who left a lifetime impression on all of us. Altoona Mirror writer John Hartsock wrote a fitting tribute to the “Legendary coach” published on Tuesday, April 23, 2024. That article and his beautiful obituary published in the Mirror captured the life and impact Coach Rusnak made in his 81 years as father, husband, teacher, friend and coach. As a former wrestler ...

Mailbag

March 2, 2024

Gambling leading many down the wrong road I have to laugh at the new commercials warning of sports gambling. Where were these spots five years ago before a generation of young and old lost their homes, savings accounts, marriages to the couple clicks on your phone? They’ve got your credit card numbers, folks. It reminds me of the 1950s when tobacco companies gave out free smokes on every street corner. The first couple packs were free. Now every sports gambling ad offers you up $100 to get started. Yeah, don’t worry about that small print at the bottom of ...