On Friday, in between the girls and boys varsity basketball games with Lehighton, Northern Lehigh will be inducting the latest team and individual into its Ring of Honor.

The 1988 PIAA State Champion Softball team, along with its head coach Brian Schell, will be honored for their contributions to the Bulldogs.

Below are a bio on Coach Schell, along with information about the 1988 champions.

Brian Schell

Coach Brian Schell coached at Slatington/Northern Lehigh High School from 1979 through 2018. Brian taught U.S. History at Slatington Junior High School/Northern Lehigh Middle School for 35 years from 1979 until his retirement in 2014. He was head softball coach for 14 years (1979-1989 and then 2007-2010), and was also an assistant softball coach for another eight years.

As head coach, his teams amassed a record of 181 wins and 112 losses. Schell was named Colonial League Coach of the Year in 2010. The 1988 and 1989 teams were Centennial League Champions, while the 2010 team was Colonial League Champion (as was the baseball team coached by Erv Prutzman). The 1988 team was District 11 runner-up and State AA Champion. The softball teams made the District 11 playoffs in 11 of the 14 years and while never winning the title, they were runners-up several times.

Schell’s final year of coaching was as an assistant coach on Head Coach Bob Hicks’ 2018 Colonial Championship team. Schell also coached Junior High School Basketball and JV and Varsity Field Hockey for seven years from 1981 through 1988. Since retiring from teaching in 2014 and to the present, Schell has been the Director of Transportation at Sights For Hope in Allentown, which provides services for people with visual impairments.

Schell would like to thank his Athletic Directors Bryan Geist, Dick Smith and Glenn Rissmiller, the Northern Lehigh administration and school board for their support over the years he coached. He would also like to thank his longtime assistant coach and good friend, Bob Hicks, as well as other coaches he got to coach with: Dennis Hock, Jim Yadush, Mark Hoffman, Kate Farber, Patty Jones, Jeff Jones, Bob Kern, Gary Warmkessel, Nicky Chirico and Missy Defrain for their help and loyalty.

Schell is also grateful for the cooperation and friendship of baseball coaches Frank Carazo and Erv Prutzman for sharing the gym and bus rides for many years. But none of the success of the Northern Lehigh teams would have been possible without all of the incredibly talented, hard working and dedicated athletes that Schell had the pleasure of coaching over the years.

And last, but certainly not least, Schell is most appreciative for his supportive family; the love of his life and wife of 43 years Sharon, his daughter Allison and her fiancé Chase Diem, and daughter Erin Steiner, her husband Nick and grandson Freddy.

1988 Softball Team

Thirty-seven years ago, the Northern Lehigh Girls Softball Team, which was nicknamed “The Golden Girls” by Channel 13 and the Times News, won the State AA Softball Championship. The team had a record of 24 wins and three losses. They were Centennial League Champions and District 11 runner-up. They were the first girls team, and the second team overall (withe the 1985 Wrestling Team being the first) to win a state championship for Northern Lehigh. On the road to winning the State Championship, the Lady Dawgs accomplished the following:

• Defeated Minersville (which was defending state champs) in the State Semifinal (and avenged the loss to them in the District 11 Final),

• Defeated four League and District Champions,

• Defeated three undefeated teams,

• Gave up only eight runs, but scored 28 runs in the District, Intra-District and State playoff games. During that season, the team broke 16 team records, while the players broke 38 individual records. Eight of the nine starting players had a batting average over .300 for the season: Heather Eitner, Cathy Fronheiser, Kim Henninger, Jen Horner, Chris Kraynik, Steph Mack, Lori Nierer and Tracy Seiler.

In addition, 11 players received Centennial League Honors:

• 4 First Team Selections (Sharon Mack, Lori Nierer, Tracy Seiler, Lynn Yochimowitz)

• 3 Second Team Selections (Heather Eitner, Nicky Warmkessel, Steph Mack)

• 4 Honorable Mention Selections (Kim Henninger, Chris Kraynik, Jen Horner, Lisa Wanamaker)

The team members included: Heather Eitner (1B), Cathy Fronheiser (2B), Aileen Gula (Yadush) (SS), Kim Henninger (Stasko) (3B), Jen Horner(SS) Chris Kraynik (LF), Sue Litzenberger (Neff) (RF), Sharon Mack (Conway) (P), Steph Mack (CF), Lori Nierer (Kieffer) (C), Ronda Reitz (Schiavone) (3B), Tracie Seiler( Merkle) (DH, OF), Lisa Wanamaker (Myers) (DH, 2B) Nicky Warmkessel (Chirico) (P), Lynn Yochomowitz (RF). Head Coach: Brian Schell. Assistant Coach: Bob Hicks. JV Coach: Dennis Hock. Managers/Stats: Cheri Dye (Bachman), Tracy Rauch (Pelligrino).

The team would like to accept this Ring of Honor nomination in memory of two players who are no longer with them: Sue Litzenberger Neff, who passed away in 2014, and Nicky Warmkessel Chirico, who passed in 2021. Warmkessel Chirico will be represented by her parents, Gary and Joanne Warmkessel. The team would like to thank Mrs. Renee Evans (the team’s biggest fan in 1988) for nominating them for the honor, as well as Athletic Director Bryan Geist, the Northern Lehigh School Board of Directors and Administrators. The team’s last and biggest thanks goes to the late Jack Follweiler (who always wanted to drive the bus for their games), the members of the Northern Lehigh Communities and especially their friends and family for their love and support back then and all through the years.