The Tamaqua Area High School Athletic Hall of Fame Committee will induct its 17th class into the Hall of Fame which will include seven new individuals.

The following is biographical information regarding the newest class into the Tamaqua Area High School Athletic Hall of Fame.LARRY LECHLech was one of the all-time winningest coaches in any sport as the Head Cross Country coach from 1991-2000 with a career record of 170-21 (boys 89-7, girls 81-14).His teams won 11 Schuylkill League Division 1 Championships; seven Schuylkill League Championships and four District 11 titles.The 1978 graduate, who was a three year letter winner in both cross country and track and field, was Tamaqua's strength and conditioning coach from 1990-2000 and again from 2004-2006. He was also a long time assistant track and field coach.Lech played Semi Professional baseball for four seasons for the Tamaqua Travelers; three seasons for the Lehighton Indians; and two seasons for the Scranton Red Sox.He received certifications as a Personal Fitness Trainer in 1980 and as a Fitness Therapist in 1983. He also received a degree in Business Administration in 1985.He is the owner of Lech Transportation and transports special needs students to Tamaqua schools and the Intermediate Unit. In 2008 he formed 900 East Broad Street, LLC a real estate and rental company in Tamaqua.Lech has two sons, Eric and Christopher and one grandson, Logan.JOE URENOVITCHUrenovitch is a 1982 graduate and excelled in basketball and football.He was a three-year letter winner in basketball ending his high school career with 987 points, which currently ranks 11th on the boys all-time scoring chart.He was a member of the 1981 District 11 Championship team where he was selected to the Schuylkill League first team and was a 1982 All-State honorable mention player.Urenovitch played football for three years and was also a 1981 All-State honorable mention player. He was named Tamaqua's football scholar athlete and the All-Around Male Athlete his senior year.He attended West Chester University where he earned a Bachelor's of Science degree in Criminal Justice. He played basketball for four years at WCU where he was captain for two years. In 1999 he was inducted into the West Chester University Hall of Fame.In 1996 he graduated from the University of Toledo College of Law where he is a member of the University's Law Review. He passed the Ohio Bar Examination in 1996.He is married to wife Kristine for 20 years and they have four children: Joey (16), Grant (15); Grace (11) and Jackson (5). They reside just outside of Toledo, Ohio.TARA ROTTET-BLACKBURNRottet-Blackburn is a member of the class of 1988 where she excelled in basketball and was a two-year captain.In her sophomore season she led the team to the District 11 and PIAA state playoffs, and was named to the 2nd team Schuylkill League all-star.Dut to an injury in her junior year, she played only three games.Her senior season she again led the team to the district and state playoffs. She led the team in assists, steals and free throw percentage; was second leading scorer with 13.2 ppg and had a triple-double in the district playoffs. She was an honorable mention All-State player, averaging 12.5 ppg, 6.0 rebounds and 7.6 assists per game.Tara finished with 705 points at Tamaqua and went on to Towson University where she set many records upon her graduation including career points (1,416), career steals (233), free throw percentage (84.6), three pointers (73), three pt. FG percentage (41.7%). She was honored as the East Coast Conference Rookie of the Year (1989), 1st Team All-East Coast Conference All Star team (90-91 and 91-92) and Towson's Senior Female Athlete (1992). She was the first to score 1,000 career points in university history.Inducted into Towson's Hall of Fame in 2003, she was ranked as one of the top three-point shooters in the country her senior year and was invited to Pre-Olympic tryout in 1992.She served as the Head Girls Basketball Coach at Cumberland Valley HS from 2007-2010.She is a registered nurse and has worked as a Certified School Nurse at various high schools since 1998. She is currently the high school nurse at Hershey High School.She is married to Paul Blackburn since 1993 and they reside in Mechanicsburg. They have three children: Victoria (17), Gabriela (15) and Luke (13). Tara is the daughter of Kay Ann Rottet and the late Thomas Rottet.ERIKA BARRONBarron is a 2007 graduate of Tamaqua where she was a talented multi-sport athlete excelling in Basketball, Track, Cross Country and Volleyball.In basketball, she was a four-year letter winner ending her career as the school's All-Time leading scorer for both boys and girls with 2,317 career points.She was named to the 1st team AAA All-State team as a junior; and 2nd team AA as a senior. She holds many school records including: Points in a season (738), Pts in a game (42 - tied with Cindy Miller), scoring average/season (27.3), Avg./Career (21.8), 3-pt FGs/Career (332), 3-pt FGs/Season (111), 3-pt FGs/Game (8).Her No. 3 basketball jersey was retired at Tamaqua.In track, she was a three-year letter winner and a three-time PIAA State qualifier. In her junior year she was a member of the District 11 Champion 4x400 meter relay team. As a senior, she was a district silver medalist in the javelin and as a member of the 400 and 1600 meter relay teams.She ran cross country in her junior year and was a member of the 2005 district championship team. She was also a member of the volleyball team her freshman and sophomore years.After high school she attended Susquehanna University and was a four-year starter on the basketball team. She holds the All-Time three-point record for a career (171) and in a season (67). She finished her collegiate career with 980 points. In her senior year she was named to the 1st team Landmark Conference and was a scholar athlete both semesters. She majored in Elementary and early Childhood Education and minored in Business. She graduated Summa Cum Laude and was on the Dean's list all eight semesters.Barron has been a long-term substitute teacher at the Tamaqua Elementary school for the last two years. She is an assistant boys' basketball coach at Panther Valley High School.She is the daughter of Duane and Michelle Barron of Tamaqua and is the fiancé of Matthew Davis.ISAAC DUNKELBERGERDunkelberger is a member of the class of 2007 where he excelled in cross country and track.In cross country, he is the only PIAA Cross Country State champion in Tamaqua school history when he was champion his junior year with a time of 15:54 in Hershey. In his senior year, he won the silver medal at states with the exact same time of 15:54. As a sophomore he was a medal winner finishing eighth and as a freshman he placed 33rd.He was a three-time District 11 champion and was the 2003 runner-up as a freshman in cross country. He was also a four-time Schuylkill League champion and is the current course record holder. He was also undefeated all four years in league competition.He was a member of the three-time team District 11 champions (2004-2006). The teams at the state championships placed seventh in 2004 and 2005 and 11th in 2006.Nationally, Isaac finished ninth at the 2005 Great American Cross Country Festival in a personal best time of 15:42.In track, he was a District 11 champion in the 1600 (2005, 2007) and the 3200 (2005, 2007). He was also two-time league champion in the 1600 and three time league champion in the 3200. He finished ninth in the 3200 at the PIAA State championships as a senior. He was also a member of the district championship 3200 relay teams.Isaac went on to run at Duke University where he was a four year member of the Blue Devil cross country and track programs. He was part of the 2009 IC4A championship winning team. He set personal bests in the 5K and 8K in track at Duke.He is currently working as a Credit Analyst at Midtown Bank in Atlanta, GA.He is the son of Wendy Sue Dunkelberger and Kenneth John Dunkelberger Sr.ALEXA GRIFFITHSGriffiths is a 2007 graduate where she was a four year member of both the cross country and track programs and a three year member of the swim team.Her cross country career included being a four time Schuylkill League Champ; four year state medalist; two time district gold medalist; silver and bronze medalist. She finished 13th at states her senior year and 23rd her junior year. She was a member of two District 11 championship (04, 05) teams.She was a four-year state qualifier for track and was a two-time district champion (2006-07) in the 3200 and a gold medalist in the 1600 in 2007. At states, she finished 12th in the 3200 in her junior year and ninth her senior year. She also finished 13th as a senior in the 1600.In her senior year, she was nominated for the high school Heisman Award where she was the female Pennsylvania state winner in 2006.While in high school she started Soul to Sole, where she collected gently used running shoes and sent them to kids in need.After graduating, Alexa continued her academic and athletic career at Bucknell University. At Bucknell, she was named Patriot League Rookie of the Week in the fall of 2007. She was a four year member of the Bison cross country, indoor and outdoor track teams. She was a member of Bucknell's three-time Patriot League cross country champs and was listed on the Patriot League Academic Honor roll.She continued her Soul to Sole program at Bucknell and in her junior year, she began an outreach program at ClearVision, a residential treatment facility that helps young women in trouble with the law.Her senior year she was one of 15 finalists in the Students in Service Awards for her work with ClearVision. Alexa graduated Cum Laude from Bucknell University in 2010 with a BS in Biology and a minor in Spanish and Women's and Gender Studies.Prior to graduation, Alexa entered into the two-year commitment with Teach for America. She was assigned to the Las Vegas Valley where she is currently a 7th grade science teacher and an LEP instructor.After her commitment to TFA is completed, Alexa plans to pursue her goal of attending medical school.She is the daughter of E. Franklin (Sank) and Bernadette Griffiths.AMANDA SANDLIN SCHOONOVERSandlin Schoonover is a member of the Class of 2007 and excelled in diving and tennis while at Tamaqua.She was a three time Schuylkill League diving champion and District 11 champion her senior year. She was district runner up as a junior. At states she was a two-time medal winner placing 8th as a junior and 4th as a senior. She broke the school and pool records her senior year for the 11 dive competition with a score of 431.35 - a record which still exists.In tennis, she played third singles her senior year, and second doubles her junior year.Throughout high school she held internships at the Times News, National Geographic and SHAPE Magazine.She coached diving for one summer after graduating high school.She attended Rider University and dove for the Swimming & Diving team, taking 3rd place at the MAAC (Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference) championships.During her junior year she studied abroad in Ghana, Africa, and taught English, Environmental Science and computers at a school in one of Accra's impoverished areas.She graduated in 2011 with a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism and a minor in Political Science.She recently got married to Chris Schoonover and now lives in the Princeton area of NJ.She works at the chamber of commerce in Princeton as a communications and marketing coordinator.