FIVE MORE CHAMPIONSHIP TEAMS
INDUCTED INTO HALL OF FAME

The Collingswood Hall of Fame tonight will be inducting five championship teams to its hall of honor.
They include three additional championship wrestling teams of Coach Sam Coursen. They follow the 1959-60 team that was inducted in 2010.
The 1960-61 team that was undefeated (12-0) and posted victories over major rivals Paulsboro and Haddonfield will be inducted tonight. Jim Robertson and Jack Christ completed unbeaten years during the regular season and Robertson became the second Collingswood wrestler to win a state championship. Dave Steiler placed runnerup and Mike Mosman took fourth in the states.
The 1961-62 team followed that team by posting an 11-0-1 record and winning another Group Four championship. Paulsboro managed a tie as the only smirch in Collingswood’s record. Bill Hale and Ray Mosman posted unbeaten records for the Panthers.
Collingswood continued to roll in 1962-63 with
The 1964 baseball team (17-4 overall), coached by Neil Thompson, completed the season with 13 straight victories and the Group Four South Jersey championship as its hallmark. The Panthers were led by Mark Miller and Jack MacNamara and captains Bill Cattell and George Shirmer.
The 1965 football team had its best season in years in Coach Dick Ridinger’s last year as head coach. The Panthers were upset by Sterling, but otherwise rolled to a Colonial Conference championship and paved the way for an unbeaten 1966 season. The team was led by guard-linebacker Bob MacBride, halfback Ed Friberg, end and placekicker Jerry Reis, quarterback Jim Smith, tackle Bruce Boyer, defensive back Bruce Klein, fullback Bob Moore, center Bruce Krueger and halfback Art Normandin.

ROBERT YOUNG
   Young played three years as shortstop for Ed Kurkian and Neil Thompson’s baseball teams of 1963, ’64 and ’65 teams. He was MVP of baseball in 1965. He remembers life-enhancing inspiration from his two coaches, as well as the late mechanical drawing teacher Rudy Yeager.
   He earned a BA degree in geology from Rutgers-Camden and served in the Air Force, retiring with the rank of captain. Young served in the Vietnam War as a C-130 pilot and would like to pay tribute to those seven Colls graduates who lost their lives in Vietnam.
Those who died in Vietnam are memorialized in the monument in Knight Park, at Park and Browning Roads.
   Young has a daughter, Heather, 22.

DAVID ‘DAVY’ LANDIS
   Davy Landis competed in four sports: football, wrestling, track and golf at Collingswood High. His best sport was track. In his senior year of 1968, he ran the 440-yard dash and was team co-MVP.
   Landis had the memorable moment of winning the 440 in the Camden County Meet. He also achieved all-South Jersey and All-State mention. He is married to Kathleen and has one child, Kodiak, 16.

ED LANDIS
   Ed Landis, class of 1964, competed and lettered in football, wrestling and track during his years at Collingswood High. He was a running back in football, won a district championship in wrestling and received honors throwing the javelin in track.
   He attended art schools and colleges: Tyler School of Art of Temple University, Mercer County College, Philadelphia College Art (B.F.A.) and Central Washington University (M.F.A.). Landis is married to the former Gina Franchini and has three children: Wyatt, Cosima Franchini and Ocean.

DANIEL AYDELOTTE
   Dan Aydelotte followed Bob Young as a baseball standout at Collingswod. He played a year of football and wrestled for two years, but starred in four years of baseball. In 1988, his junior year, he was a second-team All-Colonial Conference outfielder.
   But he reaped many awards in 1989, his senior year. He was first-team All-Conference and All-Group 2 and was also a first-team All-South Jersey and All-State outfielder. Aydelotte was also picked for the South Jersey Central team in the annual Carpenter Cup and considers it a highlight of his career that he played for the team that won the Carpenter Cup.
   He played baseball with the Pete Rose (“Charlie Hustle’) attitude and for this he thanks his Dad for instilling. Aydelotte went on to earn a civic engineer degree at Widener University. He is married to Kimberly and they have three children: Amanda, 11; Kristen, 9; and Kelly, 5.

NANCY CAMPBELL WATSON
   Nancy Campbell was a four-year letterman in softball and was an All-South Jersey selection in her senior year (1985). She has vivid memories of going to the state championship games, running the park for practice while it was snowing outside, and wearing the banana-yellow uniforms.
   She went to Omega Institute for Business and received a certificate in business.
Campbell is married to Greg Watson and is the mother of Alli, 18.

ENOS ‘SAM’ YOUNG
   Sam Young is a graduate of Gettysburg College and holds an M.Ed. degree from Temple University. He served in the U.S. Navy, retiring with a rank of RM2, and served the Atlantic Service Fleet.
   He taught physical education at all three levels (elementary, middle school and high school) of the Collingswood school district for 30 years, retiring in 1992. Young coached several teams at Collingswood High. He coached football for 12 years and served as head coach in five of those years. He also coached as head coach of girls’ tennis and as JV coach of the JV basketball and baseball teams.
   Young is married to Nancy. They have three adult children: Melissa, David and Wendy.
  
WENDY WILLIAMSON
   Wendy Williamson is well-known in Collingswood for coaching in the field hockey rec. program for the past 26 years. She started in 1985 as a freshman at the suggestion and encouragement of her high school coach, Sandy Ritter.
   She enjoyed playing hockey at Collingswood High for three years, two of them alongside her sister, Hall of Famer Julie Williamson. Wendy was a three-year letterman and an All-Group 2 choice in her senior year. She also was a four-year letterman in track and served as captain in her junior and senior years. In her senior year, she ran the 1,600 meters and was team MVP.
   Williamson also was a two-year letterman in swimming. She is a graduate of the Katharine Gibbs Business School.

MICHELLE MINERVA
   Michelle Minerva earned 11 varsity letters during her years at Collingswood and served as captain of three sports. She was a standout in basketball (four letters) and softball (three) and also played tennis (three) and a year of soccer.
   She was the youngest player on the 1986 state championship team and went on to receive All-Conference honors and All-South Jersey second team men. In softball, Minerva won All-Conference, All-South Jersey and All-State honors. She was MVP of both the basketball and softball teams.
   Among her memorable moments in Collingswood sports, she recalls twice turning an unassisted triple play as a softball third baseman.
 
BOB HUNT
   Bob Hunt is the third member of the Hunt family (brother Bill and sister Nancy Hunt Manzoni) to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. He is the sixth member of the combined Hunt and Rossell families (uncle Hank and sister Louise and cousin of Hank Jr.), so he had good athletic genes.
   Hunt was a three-year starter in both football and baseball at Colls High. He was a first-team All-Colonial Conference and third-team All-South Jersey choice in football. He also received the Silver Award for athletics.
   Hunt remembers beating the Cherry Hill East football team, ranked #1 in South Jersey, in his sophomore year. He also recalls how he almost missed the last football game of his career. Injured while hit by a car walking home from practice, he was not allowed to play on Thanksgiving. But the Thanksgiving weather was so bad, the game was postponed until Saturday and he was given the OK to play in that game.
   He holds a B.S. in business from Rider University.

KEVIN HILYARD
   Hilyard was a track and field star at Colls High, graduating in 1973. He had a great senior track season after lettering in cross-country. An outstanding half-miler in track, he received All-Conference, All-Camden County and All-South Jersey honors.
   His most lasting achievement was winning the South Jersey Group III champion in the 880-yard run, a record that is believed to still stand 38 years later as a Collingswood record. He holds an associate degree from Camden County College and went on to earn a B.S. from Drexel University.
   He is married to Barbara and is the father of four adult sons: Kevin, Ryan, Brendan and Shawn.

JACK McCONNELL
   Currently the head football coach at Collingswood High, McConnell earned a total of six varsity letters in football and wrestling from 1985-88. He captained the teams and was a two-year MVP in both sports. At graduation, he received both the Irvine Award and Sohanchak Award.
   In football, McConnell received All-Conference, All-Group II and third team All-South Jersey laurels and was honorable mention All-State. Wrestling honors included being a district champion and two-time Christmas Tournament champion and being chosen to the South Jersey team that competed against Delaware all-stars. He defeated a state-ranked undefeated wrestler in the district tournament.
   McConnell went to Catholic University, where he set two school records for most tackles. His one-season record still stands. He was chosen the USA Today Player of the Week and was the Catholic University Athlete of the Year in 1992.

JOANN WEBER
   Joann was a leader on the 1976 Colls team that won the first state lacrosse championship (the first-ever team state title won by Collingswood) and the Delaware Valley League crown. She played in the state playoffs with a broken thumb wrapped and taped and contributed a few goals along the way.
   She earned three letters each in lacrosse and field hockey and two in basketball. Joann was a first-team Delaware Valley selection.
   Recruited to LaSalle University, she joined a relatively new program comprised of mostly freshman. By the time Joann was a senior, she captained her Lady Explorers to the AIAW Division II national championship, 3-2, over Southwest Missouri State.

PETE FERRARA
   Pete wrestled and played football for Collingswood High during the 1976 to 1979 seasons. He lettered three times in wrestling and twice in football. He was a tri-captain of the Colls football team when it won the Colonial Conference in 1978.
   Pete was a two-time district champion in wrestling and was a runnerup in the regionals to qualify for the state championships in 1979. He was also tri-captain of the team which won its first district championship in 20 years.
   He lives in Running Springs, CA, with his wife, Kathleen, and two daughters, Audrey and Rory. He is the woodshop teacher at the local high school and, not surprisingly, coaches wrestling.