Class of 2019
Hall of Fame Class of 2019
Rita Piszker Basile
Rita is a 1974 graduate of PAHS and has earned her honor by both playing and coaching many sports. She did not play any sports until her junior year when she joined and lettered in basketball. In her senior year she added volleyball and track and field – where she lettered in all three sports. In basketball she led in rebounding in her junior year and was named co-captain and finished second in points and rebounds and was named the outstanding senior player. In the first year of the volleyball program, she was the only senior and was named a co-captain on the team. In track and field, she threw javelin and discus. She placed second in the javelin at Brookville in the AAU Junior Olympic qualifying meet and she competed in the Western PA Junior Olympic Track and Field Championships in Latrobe. Rita was the first woman to receive the All-Sports Banquet award. She was voted the most outstanding female athlete in her senior class. Rita was an assistant and head coach for volleyball. In 1992 she was instrumental in creating the softball team, which won districts during the second season. Her final softball coaching career record was 160-87.
David Constantino
David was a stand-out in basketball, golf and baseball at PAHS and is a 1987 graduate. He also attended Mercyhurst College on a 4-year basketball scholarship from 1988-92. He was a team captain, MVP in his junior and senior years and was a 4-year letter winner in basketball. He was the 3rd all-time leading scorer with 1,276 points with 40 points against Altoona. He was named District 9 Basketball All-Star for 3 consecutive years. He’s a 3-year letter winner in golf and was MVP his sophomore year. During his first varsity golf match, as a freshman he hit a hole-in-one on his first shot, first hole! In baseball he earned 3 letters and was awarded the Army Scholar Athlete Award. During high school he was president of Varsity Club and a member of National Honor Society. His freshmen year of college he broke the team’s single-game record for 3-point field goals with 8. He was all-time career leader for 3-pointers with 162. He was also named senior male athlete of the year at Mercyhurst. He is a social studies teacher at Clarion Jr.-Sr. High School and has coached basketball, golf and softball. He was also the assistant athletic director for 3 years.
Ralph E. Kunselman
He is a 1959 graduate of PAHS and played JV & Varsity football. He played in various positions including punts, kickoffs, starting running back and linebacker. He received the Joe V. Harrick Memorial Trophy and named outstanding back and first-team all-conference. He attended the University of New Mexico on a football scholarship and was named first-team fullback. He later transferred to Otero Junior College and played fullback and was named all-conference once again. When he transferred to Western State College, he decided to play baseball and was the pitcher during 1964-65. He also played center for the undefeated 1964 team and was inducted in the mountaineer Sports Hall of Fame. He was also named all-conference center in 1965 and his team finished 8-1. Ralph taught school for 30 years as a math teacher at Canon City High School where he coached football and baseball. He also was a high school football official. He was inducted into the Colorado Football Officials Association Hall of Fame in 2003.
Marcella Jean Hughes McGaughey
Marcella set several records during her high school and college competition as a runner. She is a 2000 graduate of PAHS and was a District 9 champion in the 3200 & 1600-meter relay teams as a freshman. As a sophomore she was an 8th place finisher at the state qualifier at Mayfield Golf Course in Cross Country & she helped set the District 9 1600-meter relay record of 4:08. As a junior, she qualified for track & field states in the 400-meter dash as a result of her 1st place finish at the District 9 Championships. As a senior, she was a state qualifier in cross country as well as in indoor track in the 400-meter dash. She broke the 400-meter record that had been held for 21 years with 57.95 at the West Central Coaches meet. She also took first place at Districts and qualified for States in the 200, 400, 1600 & 3200 races. While attending St. Francis University on a scholarship, she ran track & field & had several top-10 performances. She still holds the record for the indoor 600-meter run & was awarded the NEC Athlete of the Week honors. She has also run in the Chicago & Boston Marathons. She recently accepted a position as a transplant coordinator at Massachusetts General Hospital.
Dr. Rodney White
Rod is a 1967 graduate of PAHS and excelled in track and field, football and Little League. In track and field, he threw shot put and ran in the 100 and 220 sprints and 440 relay. He held the school record in the shot put. He was co-captain of the football team and was named All-State and Big 33 as a halfback. He played football for Syracuse Orange on a scholarship, but also was offered scholarships to Penn State, North Caroline State and Davidson. He was the pitcher for his Little League team in 1960 and 1961, which were runner-ups at the state finals both years. He continued to play baseball on a Legion team as well. He was valedictorian at Syracuse University and received his MD in 1974 from State University of NY. He’s Chief of Vascular Surgery at Harbor-UCLA. He has received numerous career honors, including being named 2019’s Who’s Who in the World. He has had over 300 papers published, along with 12 books on various topics in vascular and endovascular surgery.
Patricia Mottorn-Cressley
She is a posthumous inductee from the PAHS graduating class of 1971. Women’s sports were just beginning to get organized when she was in high school; however, she did participate in basketball at its early inception. When girls’ basketball was being organized during her junior year, players had to drive themselves to every game and had no uniforms. During her senior year, it was an organized sport through PIAA, had a coach and uniforms. She led the team in scoring naming her MVP. She was active in Girls Athletic Association, Gym Club, received the President’s Physical Fitness Award, was an honor student and was involved in intramural sports. She was voted as the most athletic female in her senior class. After high school she was active in the Women’s Softball League, playing shortstop and in the outfield. She also participated in ASA-sanctioned softball for women over 30 and competed in Nationals in Alabama. She also participated in senior Olympic events through National Senior Games Association. She graduated from IUP with a BS in business administration, majoring in accounting.
James Scarantine
James is posthumously being honored for his efforts in football, track and field, basketball and baseball. In football and track and field he lettered 4 times. He set the record for the most touch downs and most rushing yards in a season. He set the record for shot put as well. He was on the All-Star team for JC Baseball League and Legion baseball. He served as vice president of the school board and was a deputy fish warden.