By: Michael Love


Monday, February 24, 2025 | 5:24 PM

The Armstrong Sports Hall of Fame will celebrate its Class of 2025 on April 27.

A distinguished collection of the county’s athletic greats — Ted Faber, W. David Hoff, Tye Desidero, Gary Montebell, Terra Schall, Joe Diani, Paul Noonan, Denny Wolfe, Jackie Huth, J. Gary DeComo and Al King — will be celebrated at Laube Hall in Freeport.

Tickets to the banquet and enshrinement ceremony, set for 4 p.m., are $40 and are available by contacting Dennis Wolfe at 724-882-3557.

For more information, contact Bill Dillen at bdillen@comcast.net.

Here is a look at this year’s inductees:

Ted Faber

The 1967 Apollo High School graduate excelled in football, basketball and softball.

Playing both quarterback and defensive back, Faber helped the Apollo football team finish as WPIAL runner-up in 1965. He later was selected to the all-time Apollo High School football team.

As point guard on the basketball team, he was the team’s leading scorer. He tallied more than 30 points in a game seven times and was voted team MVP his senior season.

Faber was recognized several times as a softball all-star.

Dr. David Hoff

The 1978 Apollo-Ridge graduate was a baseball standout on numerous fronts.

Hoff, who also graduated from Pitt-Johnstown and Palmer College of Chiropractic, was a two-time American Legion all-state performer and became Pitt-Johnstown’s first athlete to be drafted and signed to a professional contract (Milwaukee Brewers).

A standout pitcher and first baseman at UPJ, he led NCAA Division II in strikeouts per nine innings, averaging nearly 13 a game.

Ty Desidero

The 2002 Kittanning High School graduate was a four-year football letter winner and three-time team captain who was selected an all-conference safety and honorable mention quarterback.

At IUP, Desidero earned four letters, served as a defensive captain, and helped lead the team to three PSAC championships. He was the team’s leading tackler in 2005.

Gary Montebell

The Kittanning High School graduate is well known for his involvement in ice hockey and rink management.

A club hockey player at IUP and Penn State and a coach at the high school and amateur level, Montebell assisted in the installation of the ice rink in New Kensington and became the director of the Belmont Complex in 2005.

He remains actively involved as an instructor for area youth hockey programs.

Terra Schall

The 2014 Kittanning graduate was a four-year letter winner in softball who batted .574 as a senior and earned various all-star honors. She also was a four-year standout and letter winner in volleyball, helping lead the team to four straight WPIAL playoff appearances.

Schall continued her volleyball career at Allegheny College where she was a four-year starter and letter winner. As a libero, the three-time North Coast Athletic Conference selection set both season and career records for digs.

Joe Diani

The 2010 Leechburg grad was a four-year football letter winner, two-time team captain, and team MVP who earned Eastern Conference all-star recognition as a wide receiver, defensive back and punter.

Diani also was a three-time basketball letter winner and two-time team captain. He led the team in assists and was named team MVP as a senior. He was selected to play in the Cager Classic.

Paul Noonan

The 1965 Leechburg graduate started two years on the football team at quarterback and defensive back and earned Valley News Dispatch all-star honors.

He also was a track and field team captain and held school records in the 100- and 200-yard dashes.

Noonan played football at IUP and was a member of the 1968 Boardwalk Bowl team.

As a coach, he is known for his time as the offensive coordinator at Jeannette when the Jayhawks won two WPIAL titles and 14 conference championships.

Denny Wolf

The Leechburg (1993) and Westminster College (1997) graduate began his journalism career as a local newspaper freelance writer before joining ESPN where he serves as a senior producer.

Wolfe’s work covering every major league and other sporting events has brought him numerous awards. He is a nine-time National Sports Emmy Award winner and a two-time Edward R. Murrow Award honoree.

Jackie Huth

The 1976 Freeport graduate was a three-year letter winner and starter at tailback who rushed for more than 5,000 yards in his career.

Huth, who also played safety and returned punts and kicks, was a multi-time all-conference and all-state selection. He helped Freeport finish as a WPIAL runner-up in 1974.

J. Gary DeComo

The 1970 Ford City graduate earned his degree from Robert Morris in 1975 and became a magistrate in 1994. He is best known for his program, “Drugs Kill Dreams” in which he gathered recorded messages from Pittsburgh professional athletes, law enforcement, medical professionals and others.

DeComo also sponsored numerous basketball tournaments from elementary to high school levels and provided awards to outstanding players of the week.

Al King

The 1978 Dayton High School graduate is in his 11th year as the athletic director at Ashland University where he oversees a department that includes 24 sports and more than 700 athletes.

King, a member of the board of directors for the Division I Athletic Directors Association, helped Ashland’s athletic department to a second-place finish in the Learfield Director’s Cup for all sports. The college’s athletes and teams have produced more than 30 national titles.

Michael Love is a TribLive reporter covering sports in the Alle-Kiski Valley and the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. A Clearfield native and a graduate of Westminster (Pa.), he joined the Trib in 2002 after spending five years at the Clearfield Progress. He can be reached at mlove@triblive.com.

Tags: Apollo-Ridge, Armstrong, Freeport, Leechburg