The Carbon County Hall of Sports Hall of Fame committee will hold its 2024 induction dinner and program on Sunday, May 26, at the Franklin Township Volunteer Fire Company hall.

The ceremony will honor 21 inductees from six Carbon County communities and Coaldale who were selected for the honor by committees representing each of the towns.

The doors will open at 12:30 p.m. and the banquet will commence at 1:45.

The honorees include:

Coaldale – Bernie Krasnisky, Joseph J. Hedash and Charles Sproule.

Jim Thorpe – Phil Redline, Craig Zurn, Joe Eichorn and Jim Strubinger.

Lansford – Dan Wynn, Lacy Gonzalez Horan and Caz Kosciolek Sr.

Lehighton – Mike Tkach, Duane Heydt and Jennifer Lobasso.

Nesquehoning – Joe Tout, Esther (Hoffer) Dycziewycz and Dr. Scott Marek.

Palmerton - Lori Ann Weaver and Steve Endres.

Summit Hill – Trevor Lawrence III, Jill Zwiesdak and Trish O’Gurek.

Tickets to the event ($40 for adults and $25 for children) are available from the following: Dan McGinley, 570-325-3550, Vince Spisak, 570-645-4542, Jake Boyer, 610-751-6634, Trevor Lawrence, 570-645-4722, Bill Gardiner, 570-669-6564, Bob Gelatko, 570-645-7565, and Evan Evans, 570-645-7716.

The Times News will begin running the biographies of the inductees by town) on Saturdays. The inductees representing Summit Hill are as follows:

TJ Lawrence

He played varsity football and baseball each for four years and basketball for three campaigns, earning 11 letters, as one of the finest athletes to wear the Blue and Gold of Marian Catholic High School.

Trevor “TJ” Lawrence III entered the record books during his four years from 2000-2004 at the Hometown diocesan school, most especially being one of the most outstanding pitchers and hitters to step on the Colts’ diamond. He was also a standout on the gridiron as a star quarterback in the long list of Marian record-setting passers.

TJ suited up as a backup QB and played on numerous special teams in his freshman season of 2000 when the Colts won the District 11 Class AA championship while advancing all the way to the PIAA Eastern Final before bowing to eventually state champion Mt. Carmel and finishing with a 12-2 mark. In the next three seasons, he took over the reins of the Colt offense and put up great numbers that placed him fifth in Marian’s career yardage passers.

In his sophomore year, he threw for 925 yards and 5 TDs, following that up with a pair of 1,000-yard passing seasons, those being in 2002 when he threw for 1,346 yards and 10 TDs and in 2003 when he hit receivers for 12 TDs and 1,293 yards passing.

When it was all said and done, TJ amassed 3,546 yards, being one of four other Marian QBs to pass for over 3,000 yards in his career, ranking him behind the likes of Brent “Chuck” Andrew, Brian Kennedy, Ethan Kuczynski and Stan Dakosty Jr. He tossed 27 TDs and also ran for 14 TDs and 336 yards in his career.

TJ called the signals as Marian advanced to the Eastern Conference semifinals both in his junior and senior campaigns, getting numerous accolades from regional sports writers, not only as a QB but as one of the best punters in the region.

It was his same strong arm and strength that enabled TJ to make an immediate impact on the Marian Colt baseball team, where he started as a pitcher and right fielder. In his four-year career, he put up prolific record-breaking numbers on the mound and at the plate.

The hard-throwing righty hurled all four years and also was the opening day pitcher for all four years, going 4-3, 7-1, 5-1 and 7-2 on the mound for a combined record of 23-7, during which time his seasonal ERA data was 2.26, 1.26, 3.70 and 2.73. He fanned 236 batters in 208 innings pitched for the Blue and Gold, including 15 Ks against Weatherly as a junior. In his senior year, TJ hurled a no-hitter against rival Tamaqua.

As impressive and dominant he was on the hill, TJ was even better at the plate as his batting averages got better every season, starting at .350 as a freshman and going to .388, .422 and .426. He finished his career as one of the top hitters in Marian history with 100 singles, 25 doubles, 4 triples and 9 home runs. He drove in 82 of his teammates, scored 77 runs and had an on-base percentage of 55 percent.

During TJ’s career on the diamond, the Colts went 61-22, winning the Schuylkill League Division III championship in four straight years (‘01-04). In ‘03, his junior campaign, the Colts were the first team to be undefeated in Division III play, 12-0. The ’01 team won the 2001 District 11 Class A crown and advanced to the state tournament.

Finishing his career on the diamond for fellow Hall of Fame Coach Jeff Nietz’ teams, TJ became the second Marian pitcher to amass 20 wins. His total of 23 wins is still a Marian school record.

He was also the third pitcher to fan over 200 batters, currently standing in third place with 236 Ks. He also ranks as the top pitcher in innings pitched with 208 and in games pitched with 41 appearances.

At the plate, TJ was the first Colt batter in school history to reach the 100-hit plateau in a career, finishing with 138 hits, a Colt record to date. The 100-hit mark stood for 12 years at Marian and was surpassed twice and tied once to this day.

In between the Fall and Spring seasons, TJ donned a Colt basketball jersey, playing three years of varsity ball, including back-to-back seasons when he saw action in all 27 Colt games. He and his teammates made districts his junior year (’02-03) and also made it one step farther in his senior year (’03-04), advancing to the PIAA tournament. He ended his cage career with 533 points in 68 varsity appearance.

TJ graduated in 2009 with a Bachelor of Science degree from Moravian College, for whom he brought his talents, playing baseball all four years for the Greyhounds. His most successful year was as a freshman when he won 6 games on the mound. He was named Commonwealth Conference Co-Rookie of the Year.

TJ is the third generation inductee, joining his grandfather, Trevor Lawrence, Summit Hill High School Class of 1963, and his father, Trevor Lawrence, Marian Catholic High School Class of 2016, as Carbon County Hall of Famers.

Trish O’Gurek

Her high school coach called her “the best competitor I’ve ever coached,” and that label probably best describes the Hall of Fame high school and college career of Summit Hill’s Trish O’Gurek.

A 2001 graduate of Panther Valley High School, she was an amazing presence on the courts and diamond for the Lady Panthers, whose teams, coincidentally, finished with some of their finest records ever in the school’s history, before she moved on to Alvernia College, Reading, where the Crusaders cage team mirrored the Lady Panthers’ success through her four years there.

Trish scored 1,923 points in her eight-year stint in high school and college basketball and the teams she played on had a combined record of 167-62, a 72.9 winning percentage.

She came on the athletic scene at PV in 1998 where she immediately saw action as a freshman on the basketball team, and proceeded to play prominent roles for the next four years. Known for her pitbull and heady style of play, besides entering the PV record books as a 1,000 point scorer, she often led the team in rebounds and assists.

She tallied 194 points as a sophomore, when she helped the Lady Panthers advance to the PIAA Eastern Finals before dropping a 63-46 nail-biter to Bishop Hoban of Wilkes-Barre. The following campaign, she netted 402 points when her team made it to the Easter semifinals, losing to Delone Catholic, 49-39.

But it was in her senior year that O’Gurek rose to the top of her game, garnering 458 points in the Panthers’ 15-9 campaign, averaging 19.1 points per game, 9.5 rebounds each outing, and dishing out an average of 3.5 assists per game.

That outstanding season earned her Associated Press Fourth Team All State honors, was Standard Speaker and the Republican Herald all area first team, Morning Call all-area 2nd team and she was dubbed the Times News Girls’ Basketball Player of the Year at the season’s end, finishing her high school career with 1,085 points.

In all, the Lady Panthers were 81-32 (71.6 percent) while Trish wore one of their uniforms, afterward, her coach, Rob Kovac, commenting at the time, “I don’t want to slight any of the other players who played here, but she’s the best all-around player I ever coached at PV. There were others who were better than her in specific areas, but she’s the best all around. She’s also the best competitor I’ve ever coached.”

She went on to Alvernia and played for four years for Coach Kevin Calabria, whose teams, like Panther Valley, had a record of 86-30 (74.1 percent), including two 24-6 seasons in her freshman and senior years.

She tallied 838 points for the Lady Crusaders, but, more importantly, showed tremendous instincts on the floor, recording 671 rebounds, 337 assists and 196 steals. Only 5-8, she led the Lady Crusaders in rebounds in her junior and senior years, with 224 and 195, respectively. Her 92 assists as a freshman also was tops on the team.

Besides her basketball prowess, Trish lettered four times each in volleyball and on the softball diamond at Panther Valley.

On the diamond, she was highly-successful at the plate, batting .302, .397, .345 and .528 through her four seasons, the latter average coming when she helped the Lady Panthers win the Schuylkill League Division III title with a 12-1 division record and a 15-5 overall record, then their first title in about 25 years. The .528 average was the highest average of any player on the lengthy coaching career of Donna Malaska. She held the school record for hits in a career with 92 until it was broken this year.

Trish proceeded to steal 85 bases in those four years, including year totals of 28, 25 and 22, and also drove in 70 runs, including 22 in the team’s divisional championship campaign.

She was a member of the Lady Panthers volleyball team earning four varsity letters.

She continued her volleyball career at the collegiate level during her final semester at Alvernia College. During that season, she appeared in 64 games as an outside/middle hitter. She was 2nd on the team with 171 kills, had 8 assist, 68 digs and 20 aces.

Trish originates from Summit Hill and currently resides with her partner, Mike Tomko, son, Michael Bieski, and their dog Martin. She is the daughter of Patricia (Billie) and the late Robert O’Gurek of Summit Hill. She is currently employed as a school counselor at the Panther Valley School District Jr./Sr. High school.

She continues her involvement with sports as she is a member of the coaching staff for the Panther Valley girls’ basketball and track and field teams.

Jill Zwiesdak

Jill E. Zwiesdak, a 1993 graduate of Panther Valley High School, learned the sport of baseball as a young girl through the involvement in the sport by her late father, Jack, and her late uncle, Bill “Cubsy” Zwiesdak.

She loved the game so much that she honed her skills on the diamond and took it all the way through her childhood, high school and collegiate careers.

She is also the daughter of the late Daune (Dankel) Zwiesdak, and the fiancee of Randy Gombert of Summit Hill.

Jill started playing baseball and softball in the T-ball, Minor League and Little League Baseball programs of Summit Hill, and played for and contributed to numerous championships as a member of the Canaries team, as well as being selected for the 11-12-year-old All Star teams representing Summit Hill.

She also played a year of softball for the People’s Security team in the Summit Hill Softball League, which won championship that year.

Moving on to Panther Valley, she played and lettered in softball for four years and was captain of the Lady Panthers’ team in her senior year.

Through her four-year career, she started every game except one, but played in that game, missing only the first inning.

In her freshman season, Jill had the highest batting average in the Times News area, hitting .500 and leading the Panthers in hits, 21, runs scored, 17, and walks, 17.

For four consecutive years, she was selected to the Times News All Star Team as a shortstop.

Upon graduating, she received the Delrose Award for Sportsmanship on the softball team, and then participated in the Keystone Games.

Jill also played girls’ basketball in grades 7-10, was a statistician and manager for the boys’ basketball team and manager of the football teams in 1991-93, all in the PV district.

She graduated fifth in her class as a member of the National Honor Society and received the Vickroy Scholarship to attend Lebanon Valley College.

She went on to play and letter in softball for four years for the Flying Dutchmen, holding down the first base position and also doing stints as a third baseman and relief pitcher.

Through her four years at LVC, she had a combined batting average of .370 and only struck out three times in her college career.

She graduated in 1997 but not before ranking No. 1 on the all-time list for career putouts with 556, a mark that stood until 2005.

Jill captained the Flying Dutchmen in her senior year and, in 1997, was selected as Lebanon Valley College’s the Fellowship of Christian Athletes Varsity Athlete of the Year, having been selected out of participants in 21 sports on campus.

She also represented LVC’s softball team on the Student Athlete Advisory Board for the Mid-Atlantic Conference.

Also at the Annville college, Jill played and lettered for two years on the woman’s tennis team, and advanced to the Mid-Atlantic Conference playoffs/championships in doubles competition as a senior.

She served as a manager and statistician for the women’s basketball teams and as an equipment manager for the football teams.

In between organized play, she participated in intramural sports as well, including wallyball, basketball and ultimate frisbee, where she won the championship.

Upon graduating, she was offered an assistant coaching position at LVC but decided to return home after picking up her Bachelor of Science degree in business administration, with concentrations in accounting, marketing and sociology.

She began coaching as a volunteer and then assistant softball coach at her alma mater (Panther Valley), remaining a softball coach there for 21 years, during which time the Lady Panthers won the Schuylkill League Division III championships in 2001 and 2003. She was also a volunteer girls’ basketball coach at Panther Valley for three years, and also was the scorekeeper for the PV swim team.

Jill was a volunteer coach, umpire and player agent for the Summit Hill Little League and served on the Board of Directors of the Summit Hill and Anthracite Little League programs.