RAY SWANSON | Keystoner Mercer 'Fame fete has new faces

There will be some new faces at the 57th Mercer County Hall of Fame Banquet, Jan. 17 at the Radisson in West Middlesex.
Lanny Frattare, long-time master of ceremonies, will be unable to attend due to a previous commitment. His replacement will be Van Crouch, a friend of Frattare and the Bestwick boys, Dick and Bill. Crouch is also the featured speaker.
Crouch is from Grove City, as are the Bestwicks, and he now lives in Wheaton, Ill. He has had coaching ties galore, even some with the college and professional levels.
Eleven inductees
Eleven of the area's most outstanding athletes will be inducted -- Anthony Aiello of Farrell and Albert Campman of Farrell; Robert Barlett of Hickory, George Dancu, Dennis Tobias and John Ciccone of Sharon; Dennis Eckles of St. Michaels; Lynn Jones of Linesville; John McClure of Grove City; Ed McCullough of McCuffey (Washington County) and Slippery Rock, and Robert Dubrasky of West Middlesex.
Aiello, a 1954 graduate of Farrell High and 1959 graduate of Clarion University, was a four-year starter in football at Farrell which won the WPIAL title in 1951. He was selected to the Mercer County All-Stars in 1954. A four-year starter at Clarion at center and linebacker, he was the starting center in 1963-64 for Long Island Giants of New York Metro League. He coached many years in high school and at New York University and is active in the KO Drugs program.
Barlett graduated from Hickory High in 1965 and Slippery Rock University in 1969. He was a three-year letter winner and captain in basketball, and was named first team Mercer County and was league MVP in 1965. Named honorable mention all-state and a Hoyle Award winner. Barlett was captain at SRU for three years, first team All-PSAC and second team all-district. He later coached at Moniteau High, Westminster, Butler County Community College and Slippery Rock.
Farrell standout
Campman, a graduate of Farrell High and Youngstown State, played football and basketball at Farrell. He was named second team all-state in football and was the point guard on the 1972 state championship basketball team. He was a four-year starter at defensive back at YSU and earned academic All-American. Coached from 1981-2001, where he had over 200 wins. He also played independent baseball in the Class B League.
Dancu graduated from Sharon High (1952) and George Washington University (1956). He played football and basketball at Sharon and was All-WPIAL and all-state end. Played in the Pittsburgh All-Star Game. Dancu was named All-Southern Conference while at GWU and honorable mention All-American in 1954-55. Once nominated for AP national player of week.
Eckles was a 1964 graduate of St. Michaels, Greenville, where he played basketball and football. His team reached the final in the PIAA state tournament three years in a row, and won state titles in 1963-64. He was named first team all-diocese in football, where he played quarterback and linebacker. He carries a 2 handicap in golf and has competed four times in the USGA Senior Amateur qualifier and the U.S. Open qualifier. He is on the Mercer County Hall of Fame board of directors.
Jones is a 1970 graduate of Linesville High and a 1974 graduate of Thiel College, where he played baseball, basketball and soccer. He was honorable mention All-PAC in basketball and was drafted in the 10th round by Cincinnati Reds. He later played with the Detroit Tigers and Kansas City Royals (with whom he won a World Series) and was third base coach for the Florida Marlins in 2001.
McClure graduated from Grove City High in 1948, where he played football and basketball. He was second in the county in scoring in 1947, was a district all-star in football and county all-star in basketball. The 1945 team was District 10 champions. He later played semi-pro with the Butler Cubs and was a PIAA official for 15 years.
McCullough graduated from McCuffey High and Slippery Rock University. He won numerous awards in the Keystone Games for swimming. He held state masters records in 45 events while swimming for the Shenango Valley YMCA. He was a state and NCAA swimming official for many years.
Starred at Sharon, Toledo
Tobias, a graduate of Sharon High (1965) and the University of Toledo ('69). He played football, basketball and golf at Sharon and was second team All-Mid American Conference in 1968. He later spent many years coaching high school football and baseball in the Toledo area.
Dubrasky is a 1957 graduate of West Middlesex High and later attended the College of Steubenville. He played baseball and basketball in high school and his teams won the Mercer County Class B title for basketball and baseball in 1957. He was all-state honorable mention in 1956-57 and later played for many years in local softball leagues.
Ciccone, who died in July 1981, was a 1956 graduate of Sharon High and a 1960 graduate of Purdue University, where he played football. He was all-state as a linebacker and guard, and was captain and MVP of the Big 33 Game. Earned honorable mention All-American honors while at Purdue. Later he was a successful high school coach in Michigan.