Hickory grad Stottlemyer enshrined in Pitt Athletics Hall of Fame

The Herald, Sharon, Pa.
·2 min read

Oct. 1—Hickory High graduate and Mercer County Hall of Famer Rande Stottlemyer was inducted into the Pitt Athletics Hall of Fame on Friday night.

The 12-member group, which represented nine different sports, was enshrined at the annual banquet at Acrisure Stadium. The inductees will also be introduced today during the Pitt vs. Georgia Tech game.

Stottlemyer was one of the greatest wrestlers developed in Mercer County, who became one of the top collegiate coaches in the country at Pitt.

At Hickory, he never lost a dual meet in four years and was the only three-time District 10 champion in school history. He lost in the state finals his senior year.

During his high school years, he was a two-time National Junior Freestyle Champion and featured in an article in Wrestling USA Magazine. He won numerous independent tournaments as well.

Stottlemyer's association with Pitt wrestling spanned nearly four decades. He was a three-time All-American for the Panthers from 1974-78, compiling a career record of 68-16-2 and winning the 1976 Eastern Wrestling League (EWL) 134-pound title.

Following his 1978 graduation from the university, Stottlemyer served Pitt as an assistant coach for one year before taking over as head coach in 1979. He led the Panthers for 34 seasons and retired in 2013 as the winningest coach in program history (304-231-12).

Stottlemyer produced 56 EWL individual champions, 33 All-Americans and three national champions. He was selected the EWL Coach of the Year five times.

His final four years as Pitt's head coach ranked among the program's finest. During that span, the Panthers won three EWL regular-season championships (2010, 2011, 2012) and three EWL Tournament titles (2011, 2012, 2013).

Pitt placed 15th in the nation in each of his final two seasons as head coach. Stottlemyer's many Hall of Fame recognitions include selection to the EWL Hall of Fame, the National Wrestling Hall of Fame, and Pennsylvania Wrestling Coaches Hall of Fame.

Stottlemyer, who was enshrined in the Mercer County Hall of Fame in 2013, died in Jan. 2018.

The other inductees that were enshrined Friday: Keisha Demas (track and field); Russ Grimm (football); Larry Harris (basketball); Rickey Jackson (football); Jerome Lane (basketball); Debbie Lewis (basketball); Angela Lopez Callahan (swimming); Ann Marie Lucanie (volleyball); Jerry Richey (track and field); Donna DeMarino Sanft (gymnastics student-athlete and coach); Pat Santoro (wrestling).