MERCER COUNTY — Bill Snodgrass and Danny Stewart are two of the 2012 inductees to the Mercer County Hall of Fame who will be enshrined Satuday at the Hall's 65th anniversary banquet at the park inn by Radisson.
Following are athletic bios of the pair.
BILL SNODGRASS
William Robert Snodgrass Jr. was a 3-year Mercer High basketball letterman and a member of two PIAA State Class B finalist teams.
He served as sixth man his sophomore season in 1963-64 when the Mustangs lost to Montrose in the state finals and finished with a record of 26-2.
His senior season, he captained and help lead the Mustangs to the state title with an overtime victory over Darby-Colwin. The team finished with a perfect 28-0 mark.
Snograss was the team’s leading scorer his junior and senior year, tallying 353 and 642 points respectively. His 87.2 foul-shooting percentage is still the best single-season mark int he school’s history. He ranks as the school’s 10th all-time leading scorer with 1,115 points.
His senior year he was named the team’s MVP and was honored as First-Team Class B All-State, Fourth Team All-State (all classes) and honorable mention All-American.
He received a full scholarship to St. Francis University where he was a 3-year starter and leading swcorer his junior year. He was Third Team All-District as a junior and named team captain as a senior.
During his 4 years at St. Francis, the teams won more games (68) than any other team in school history. He was a roommate and teammate of Norm VanLier, former Midland star who went on to a long pro career.
He served as an assistant coach under legendary coach Moe Becker and then head coach at Greensburg Salem High School. He became a PIAA and collegiate basketball and football official. In 1999, he officiated the PIAA Quad-A state football final between Erie Prep and Central Bucks.
DANNY STEWART
Danny Stewart graduated from Farrell High School in 1972, completing an illustrious basketball career by leading Coach Eddie McCluskey’s Steelers to their 7th and the school’s last PIAA state championship.
Stewart, who at 5-foot-10 played center and forward, will be remembered for his defensive as well as offensive performance in the 1972 state ghame against Chester.
The burden to guard future collegiate All-American and NBA star Herman Harris — who was 6-foot-6 — fell on Stewart when center Roy Bennett got in foul trouble. Because of Stewart, Harris scored only 14 points in the contest.
Stewart scored 819 points in his Farrell career, including 426 his senior year while leading the Steelers to a 27-3 mark. As a junior he was one of the stalwarts on a 24-3 team that bowed out of the state tourney in the Western Region final with a loss to the Maurice Lucas-led Schenley Spartans.
In his 3-year career at Farrell, the Steelers posted a 67-12 record, including 51-6 when he was a starter his final two seasons.
He was First-Team both All-Section 3 and All-WPIAL his junior and senior years. He was 3rd-Team All-State as a junior and 1st-Team as a senior, putting him in a distinct class of Farrell basketball players achieving that status.
He was selected to play in the Dapper Dan Basketball Classic in Pittsburgh and was a co-MVP of the Farrell Ralph Dresch Memorial Tournament.
As a sophomore at Farrell, he qualified for the WPIAL Track Championships in the 100-year dash.
He played basketball at St. Clair Community College in Michigan, where he was Second-Team All-Conference.
Stewart eventually relocated to Los Angeles, where he coached YMCA basketball and a flag-football youth program. He also coached Little League and did volunteer work with the Pasadena Running Roses Track Club. He served as vice president of Pasadena Junior All-American Football for 8 years.
