The Tamaqua Area High School Athletic Hall of Fame Committee will induct its 28th class into the Hall of Fame, which will include five individuals and one team.

The ceremony will be held before tonight’s game against Jim Thorpe.

Those being inducted include Tom Bonner (head football and track and field coach), Nicci Schock (Class of 1997), Heather Bensinger Patrick (Class of 1999), Dylan Rynkiewicz (Class of 2015), Nicholas Breiner (Class of 2019) and the 1972 Boys Track and Field Team

Bios of each inductee follows below:

Tom Bonner

Head Football and Track & Field coach

• Head football coach from 1983-1986 and also from 1999-2003. Has a 49-47 career record, which makes him the fourth-winningest coach in school history. He was also an assistant football coach for 10 years.

• His 1984 team was Class “B” Southern Conference Champions and Eastern Conference Class “B” runner up.

• Tom was the head track and field coach in 2004 and was an assistant track coach for over 30 years.

• In 2014, Tom was inducted into the Schuylkill County Coaches Association Hall of Fame and in 2016 the Carbon County Chapter of the PA Hall of Fame.

• Tom served in the U.S. Army from January 1969 to January 1971. He went to Kutztown University and received a BS in Elementary Education in 1975.

• Tom was a Tamaqua School District Elementary and Middle School teacher for 29 years.

• Tom and his wife Susan live in New Ringgold. They have sons, Tommy (wife Kate) and step-son Joey (wife Lacey). They have five grandchildren, Kailin, Quinn, Maddox, Kinsley, and Henry.

Nicci Schock

Class of 1997

• Nicci was a standout swimmer and diver for TAHS from 1994-1997. The girl’s team during that time was a four-time Schuylkill League team champion. She was a Schuylkill League champion in five events; two-time league champion in diving, the 200 medley relay, the 200 free relay and the 400 free relay. She also was a champion in the 100 butterfly.

• At the time of her graduation she held 14 diving records, 10 swimming records and was four-time Swimmer of the Year. She still holds the Tamaqua 6-dive record with 258.60 points. She also still holds the Pottsville pool diving record.

• In her freshman year, she was a PIAA state qualifier in the 200 medley and free relays.

• She was Tamaqua’s Female Scholar-Athlete her senior year.

• After graduation, Nicci went to Lehigh University where she earned a Bachelor of Science in Business and Economics, majoring in accounting. She was a four-time recipient of the Scholar Athlete Academic Achievement Award. She was a member of the Patriot League Women’s Swimming and Diving Champions three of her four years. She achieved the second best score on Lehigh’s all-time list for 1-meter diving and three best for 3-meter. She also is currently 19th overall for lifetime points scored.

• After graduation, she worked in audit and finance at Arthur Anderson, Ernst and Young, and Google. She attended Teachers College at Columbia University for a Master’s of Science in Nutrition and Exercise Physiology. She is a licensed registered dietitian and owns and operates a private practice sports nutrition business in New York City. She is also an Adjunct professor at Seton Hall University.

• Her and her husband, Rich Bean, reside in Hoboken, New Jersey.

Heather Bensinger Patrick

Class of 1999

• Heather was an outstanding pitcher for the Blue Raider softball program. She was a three-year letter winner and pitched four career no-hitters, which at the time of her graduation was a school record.

• She was named WNEP TV and Newswatch 13 Sports Star and Female Athlete of the Week, respectively. Her senior year she won the Tamaqua pitching and senior awards.

• She went on to play collegiate softball at Penn State Hazleton for two years. They won two state championships in 2000 and 2001, and she was undefeated in those years compiling a record of 30-0.

• Heather transferred to Mansfield University on a partial scholarship where she pitched and played centerfield. She majored in Business Management.

• She is the daughter of David and Margaret Bensinger. Heather is married to Rafe Patrick and they have a daughter, Harleigh.

• She is currently employed by PPL Electric Utilities as a Sr. Lab worker in the Meter Department.

Dylan Rynkiewicz

Class of 2015

• Dylan was a four-year decorated letter winner with the Tamaqua wrestling program and a one-year letter winner in soccer.

• In wrestling, he was a two-time Schuylkill league champion, a three-time District 11 medalist (2011-12: sixth place; 2013-14 & 2014-15: third place), a Southeast Regional medalist (2014-2015: fourth); and a PIAA championship qualifier.

• Dylan ended his wrestling career with a record of 127-32, which is currently the fourth-best record in school history. He is also currently fourth all-time in pins in a season with 19 in 2014-15.

• After graduation, he attended Lehigh Carbon Community College, earning an Associate’s degree in Applied Science. Rynkiewicz has been coaching with Tamaqua wrestling for the last three years, and will continue to help in the development of student athletes.

• Dylan is the son of Rick and Laurie, and is employed by Keystone Insurance Group in the risk management division as a safety consultant.

Nicholas Breiner

Class of 2019

• Nick was a standout member on the football team for four years, the baseball team for three years and the track field team for one.

• At the time of his graduation, Nick held school records in career rushing yards (3,798), career rushing TDs (52), total career TDs (56) and total career points (338). He still holds the school record for career rushing attempts (596). He is third on the all-time list with 1,341 yards rushing in a season (2017), and fifth most with 18 rushing TDs in a single season.

• Nick was named Times News Player of the Week three times, and Blue Ridge Player of the Week twice. He was also named to the First team All-Area squad in 2018.

• Nick went on to play football at Lycoming College for one year, and then transferred to Bloomsburg University to play football to finish his college career. He graduated with a Professional Sales and Marketing major.

• Nicholas is the son of Karen and Darryl Breiner and resides in Sarasota, Florida as a real estate agent.

1972 Boys Track & Field team,

District 11 champions

Team members of that championship team include: Dave Bass, David C. Burrell Jr., Bob Caputo, David “Chip” Christ, Dino Cicozzi, Greg Coggiano, Mark Coggiano, James R. Connely, James Lee Curvey, Ron Farrell, Dan Fetterman, Harry Fetterman (coach), Barry L. Fritz, Lawrence Fritzinger, Phil Houm (coach), James W. Hulsman Jr., Paul James, Kevin Kellner, Bruce Kemmery, Geary Lawson, Kermit Mantz, Dale Martin, Robert Mohrbach, Brad Murphy, Sam Pagano (coach), Kerry Franklin Pruett, Leonard Rascavage, Mike Rascavage, John Rudloff, Larry Sassaman, Sam Schaefer, Jeffrey C. Schock, Marvin Schwartz, Andy Smarr, Todd Steigerwalt, Jimmy Warner and Leonard Zoba.