Notebook: Hempfield to rededicate stadium
The Hempfield Area School District plans to rededicate Spartan Stadium and honor former football coach and athletic director Bill Abraham on Oct. 7.
The new name of the stadium will be Spartan Stadium, Coach Bill Abraham Field.
"That's what Coach Abraham wanted," said Marty Grbach, assistant principal at Hempfield. "Coach Abraham wanted Spartan Stadium to remain the name."
The ceremony will be held prior to the Hempfield football game against rival Penn-Trafford.
Abraham asks that his former players and coaches join him on the field during the ceremony, which will be part of homecoming.
A reception will be held at 6:30 p.m. in the cafeteria.
Lujack gives
Connellsville football coach Tommy Dolde Jr. has started a fund drive to help increase the size of the current field house, and the effort is starting to pay dividends.
Dolde was looking for donations to help with new locker room space, a meeting room and weight room.
John Lujack, who played for Connellsville in the early '40s, heard the news, and the Heisman Trophy winner from Notre Dame decided to help.
He donated $50,000 to the fund.
"That was unbelievable," Dolde said. "It's something I never expected."
Dolde said Lujack told him he is proud to be from Connellsville. Lujack told Dolde that at one time, a sports writer wrote that Lujack was from Pittsburgh.
"Lujack told him to never refer that he was from Pittsburgh," Dolde said. "Lujack told him 'I'm from Connellsville.'"
Teeing it up
The WPIAL individual golf championships begin Monday and Tuesday at various sites around the WPIAL.
On Monday, Division II, Section 2 will be held at Cedarbrook Golf Course, Belle Vernon, and Division I Section 2 at Rohanna's Golf Course, Waynesburg.
On Tuesday, the Division I, Section 1 qualifier will be held at Valley Green Golf and Country Club in Greensburg and the Division I, Section 4 qualifier will be at the Pittsburgh Field Club in Fox Chapel.
Running laps
The Westmoreland County Coaches' Association cross country meet will be held 3 p.m., Oct. 6 at Kiski School near Saltsburg.
The WPIAL cross country Championships will be held at the Cooper's Lake Campground, near Slippery Rock.
