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WPIAL announces 15-member 2025 Hall of Fame Class, includes 13 people and two teams

WPIAL announces 2025 Hall of Fame class
WPIAL announces 2025 Hall of Fame class 00:29

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - On Wednesday, the Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League announced its 2025 Hall of Fame class which includes 15 inductees across seven categories: athlete, coach, team, official, heritage, and courage. 

Among the 13 people inducted, they include Charel Allen, Trilby Busch, Russ Grimm, Aiden Hanna, Terry Kushner, Ty Law, Spencer Lee, Rick Locaitis, Dori Oldaker, Rich Saccani, Ron Semkiw, Brooke Stewart, and Rodney Wilson. 

The two teams inducted were the 1984 Seton LaSalle girls' basketball team and the 2012 North Allegheny football team.  

Meeting the 2025 WPIAL Hall of Fame Class

Charel Allen: Allen helped lead the Monessen girls' basketball team to a 100-19 record in her time with the squad as well as the 2004 WPIAL and PIAA girls' basketball championships. She finished her high school career with 3,110 points and 1,247 rebounds and is one of just three WPIAL student-athletes to score more than 3,000 points in girls' basketball. Allen continued her basketball playing career at Notre Dame and became the first player in team history to score 1,500 points, 500 rebounds, 200 assists, and 200 steals. She was drafted in the third round of the 2008 WNBA Draft by the Sacramento Monarchs and played 10 years professionally between the WNBA and leagues in Turkey, Bulgaria, and Israel. She currently serves as an assistant coach with Notre Dame's women's basketball team. 

Trilby Busch: Busch was a four-year member of the Munhall rifle team from 1958 until 1961 and helped lead them to three WPIAL titles, two state titles, and two national titles. She was part of the team that recorded a perfect score of 1,000 in 1960. She was also named a top shooter in the country as a senior in 1961. Busch is currently featured in the Heinz History Center's major exhibition, A Woman's Place. 

Russ Grimm: Grimm was a multi-sport athlete at Southmoreland, earning nine varsity letters between football, basketball, and track and field. He was the Scotties quarterback, linebacker, and punter and now the school's football field is named in his honor. He went on to play collegiate football at Pitt where he was the starting center in 1979 and 1980 and part of the teams that won the Fiesta and Gator Bowls. He played 11 seasons in the NFL, winning the Super Bowl with Washington in 1983, 1988, and 1992. After coaching he spent 26 seasons as a coach with Washington, the Arizona Cardinals, Tennesee Titans, and Pittsburgh Steelers, focusing mainly on the offensive line. He won a Super Bowl with the Steelers in 2006 as the offensive line coach. Grimm has been inducted into several Hall of Fames, including Western Pennsylvania Sports, Pitt Athletics, Pennsylvania Sports, and the Pro Football Hall of Fame. 

Aiden Hanna: Hanna was diagnosed with osteosarcoma in his leg in 2022 and it spread to his leg a year later, and this past year it returned to his original leg. He had three surgeries in both of his legs to combat the cancer and chemotherapy but remained a beacon of positivity. He started his own foundation, Aiden's Helping Hands which helps fundraise for cancer research and helps families who have children with cancer. He played golf and basketball at Hampton and was named the Most Positive Boys' Golf Athlete in Western Pennsylvania in 2023. 

Terry Kushner: Kushner serves on the WPIAL Hall of Fame and James Collin Scholarship steering committees and spent 10 years as a member of the board of directors. Along with serving as a teacher, principal, and administrator at multiple districts prior to his retirement in 2009, he was a football coach at Moon High School and Peters Township. He was named the Washington County Football Coach of the Year. 

Ty Law: During his time at Alquippa, Law played cornerback, safety, wide receiver, and running back and helped lead the Quips to a WPIAL and PIA championship in 1991. He also played basketball for the Quips where he was named team MVP. Law went on to play football at the University of Michigan and became the first true freshman to start in 1992. Drafted 23rd overall by the New England Patriots, Law played 15 seasons in the NFL, mostly with the Patriots but also spent time with the New York Jets, Kansas City Chiefs, and Denver Broncos, he won three Super Bowls in 2002, 2004, and 2005. He was named to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2019. 

Spencer Lee: As a wrestler, Lee posted a 144-1 record at Franklin Regional, winning four WPIAL titles and three PIAA gold medals at the 113 and 120 weight classes. He was ranked as the number one wrestler in the country all four years at his weight class and won the U17 world championship in 2014, and the U20 world championship in 2015 and 2016. Lee went on to Iowa where he had a record of 95-6 and three Big Ten titles in 2020, 2021, and 2023 along with NCAA championships in 2018, 2019, and 2021. Lee earned a silver medal in the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics. 

Rick Locaitis: Locaitis was a long-time PIAA official in football, basketball, baseball, soccer, softball, and volleyball. He was recognized by the PIAA for 50 years of service. In his time as an official, he officiated three PIAA basketball championship games, two PIAA baseball championship games, and one PIAA football championship game. To this day, he remains an active PIAA official in baseball, basketball, football, and soccer for the WPIAL. 

Dori Oldaker: Oldaker has a 495-139 coaching record with the Blackhawk and Mt. Lebanon girls' basketball programs and led Mt. Lebanon to four WPIAL championships and three PIAA championships. With Blackhawk, Oldaker won two WPIAL titles and two PIAA titles. She also was a coach for the USA Basketball national team trials for the U16 trials in 2011 and the U17 and U18 trials in 2012. She is currently a second-grade teacher at Washington Elementary School in the Mt. Lebanon School District. 

Rich Saccani: Saccani started the Upper St. Clair boys' tennis program and went on to compile a 404-43 coaching record in 24 years, earning nine section titles and six WPIAL team championships between 1971 and 1990. He also graduated 29 student-athletes to play at the NCAA Division I level and six to play on the National Amateur Tour. He also would go on to coach at his collegiate alma mater, California University of Pennsylvania from 1990-1993 where he had a record of 58-4 and won two PSAC championships. 

Ron Semkiw: Semkiw held the WPIAL record for shot put for 44 years with a throw of 70-01.75 at the 1972 WPIAL Championships. He also claimed the PIAA championship meet record for shot put for 33 years with a toss of 60-05.50 in 1972. He won three PIAA titles in shot put and became the first member of the 70/70 club at 19 with a throw of 70-00.05 claiming distances of at least 70 feet in both 12 and 16-pound shots. 

Brooke Stewart: Stewart scored 3,055 career points in her career with East Allegheny and was another member of this year's class to eclipse 3,000 points in girls' basketball. She led the Wildcats to the 1999 WPIAL championship and the PIAA semifinals. She went on to play at the University of Pittsburgh and was a three-year starter with 1,114 points in 111 career games and was inducted into the Pitt Basketball Club Women's Hall of Fame in 2022. 

Rodney Wilson: With West Greene, Wilson earned 12 varsity letters playing football, wrestling, and track and field. He was named PIAA All-State in 1992 and 1993 and finished his high school football career as the all-time rushing leader with 6,304 yards and 75 touchdowns. He also won WPIAL gold as a wrestler in 1992 and 1993 at the 171 weight class. Wilson played college football at Slippery Rock University, earning four letters and named to the All-PSAC Team twice. 

Two teams named to the 2025 WPIAL Hall of Fame Class

1984 Seton LaSalle Girls' Basketball: In 1984, Seton LaSalle finished the season with a 35-1 record and won both the WPIAL and PIAA championships at the 4A level despite having an enrollment that was two classifications below. The team had three 1,000-point scorers: Suzie McConnell, Kathy McConnell, and Lisa Heuer. Four of players went on to play college basketball and a fifth competed in track and field. 

2012 North Allegheny Football: The 2012 NA football team finished with a perfect 16-0 record, winning the WPIAL and PIAA 4A championships and were ranked fourth in the country by MaxPreps. They became just the third team in WPIAL history to win three consecutive titles at the largest classification and remain the most recent team to do so. In 11 of their 16 games, the team was able to eclipse 42 points. 

The annual induction banquet will be held on June 6 at the Double Tree Hotel in Greentree. 

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