Rodney Lehman
Hyndman’s Rodney Lehman falls into a very select group
of Bedford County Sports Hall of Fame inductees.
Rodney is a 2019 inductee and his father, Vohn, was inducted into the Bedford County Sports Hall of Fame back in 2013. They will be the second father/son duo in the Bedford County Sports Hall of Fame, joining Ed and Jim Clark. Janet and April Phillips are the only mother/ daughter combination giving the local hall of fame three parent/child inductees.
Rodney is a 1986 graduate of Hyndman and was a stellar all-around athlete for the Hyndman sports programs, excelling in soccer, basketball, and baseball. To this day, he is also considered one of the most talented male tennis players to ever come out of Hyndman.
Lehman was also a starter on the boys’ basketball team that won Bedford County League titles both his junior and senior years, and he was a Bedford County League Honorable Mention All-Star his senior year.
He also was a starter on the Hornets’ baseball team.
However, it was in the sport of soccer that this talented Hornet athlete achieved his greatest success, not only as a player, but also as a coach.
In the fall of 1985, Hyndman’s soccer team won the District 5 championship. It was the first and, to this point, the only district title for the Hornet soccer program.
The Hornets were losing in the final that season to District 5 powerhouse McConnellsburg, 3-1, but Lehman had a scoring burst with three consecutive goals to lift his team to a 4-3 victory and the district title.
Unlike today when teams may have over 20 games on the schedule, most teams in Lehman’s era played 14-game schedules. In that shortened schedule, Lehman held the school record with 52 goals, which held until the teams began putting more games on their schedule.
Deciding not to go to college immediately after high school, Lehman was selected for an Olympic development soccer team that featured players from the eastern United States. Lehman was the youngest player on this East Coast team as it headed off to Europe to play in the Netherlands Cup against teams from Italy, East and West Germany, and several other teams from Soviet Bloc countries. Lehman led the team in scoring with 15 goals and eight assists.
Returning to the United States, Lehman enrolled at Hagerstown Junior College in Maryland. There, he set a new school record for goals in a season (15) and in a career (26), breaking the records of Bob Breckenridge, known as “The Brit” because he was from Great Britain. He was also named to the All-Maryland JUCO team.
He played one season at Frostburg State before a knee injury ended his college career.
Lehman had a tryout for two professional soccer teams: the Columbus Crew and the Chicago Sting.
After his playing days were done, Lehman became a coach at Allegany High School for four years and helped form the Campers’ soccer program into a solid and competitive program in Western Maryland.
As word of the success of this dynamic young coach began to spread, he caught the attention of a particular high school in Ohio that wanted to turn its soccer program into a winner
In 1996, Lehman became the head coach at Hubbard High School, which is located to the east of Youngstown, Ohio, just one state away from his native Pennsylvania.
He worked hard to initially install a winning attitude with his players, the same attitude that helped fuel Lehman’s own success in the sport as well as in athletics in general throughout his career.
Within the first few seasons, that hard work ethic and positive attitude began to pay off. The teams in Hubbard’s league that once looked past the Eagles were aware of the improvement and success of Lehman’s team.
During Lehman’s tenure at Hubbard from 1996-2010, the Eagles won four league titles out of the six that they have won throughout their history. He turned the Hubbard soccer program into one of the premier programs in the state, gaining a reputation as a true soccer powerhouse in the Buckeye State.
He retired from the active coaching ranks, but Rodney continues to tutor aspiring young athletes, primarily as a tennis instructor. Several of his athletes have earned scholarships and enjoyed great success in tennis, and many are quick to credit Lehman’s tutelage for much of the success.
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Hyndman’s Rodney Lehman falls into a very select group
of Bedford County Sports Hall of Fame inductees.
Rodney is a 2019 inductee and his father, Vohn, was inducted into the Bedford County Sports Hall of Fame back in 2013. They will be the second father/son duo in the Bedford County Sports Hall of Fame, joining Ed and Jim Clark. Janet and April Phillips are the only mother/ daughter combination giving the local hall of fame three parent/child inductees.
Rodney is a 1986 graduate of Hyndman and was a stellar all-around athlete for the Hyndman sports programs, excelling in soccer, basketball, and baseball. To this day, he is also considered one of the most talented male tennis players to ever come out of Hyndman.
Lehman was also a starter on the boys’ basketball team that won Bedford County League titles both his junior and senior years, and he was a Bedford County League Honorable Mention All-Star his senior year.
He also was a starter on the Hornets’ baseball team.
However, it was in the sport of soccer that this talented Hornet athlete achieved his greatest success, not only as a player, but also as a coach.
In the fall of 1985, Hyndman’s soccer team won the District 5 championship. It was the first and, to this point, the only district title for the Hornet soccer program.
The Hornets were losing in the final that season to District 5 powerhouse McConnellsburg, 3-1, but Lehman had a scoring burst with three consecutive goals to lift his team to a 4-3 victory and the district title.
Unlike today when teams may have over 20 games on the schedule, most teams in Lehman’s era played 14-game schedules. In that shortened schedule, Lehman held the school record with 52 goals, which held until the teams began putting more games on their schedule.
Deciding not to go to college immediately after high school, Lehman was selected for an Olympic development soccer team that featured players from the eastern United States. Lehman was the youngest player on this East Coast team as it headed off to Europe to play in the Netherlands Cup against teams from Italy, East and West Germany, and several other teams from Soviet Bloc countries. Lehman led the team in scoring with 15 goals and eight assists.
Returning to the United States, Lehman enrolled at Hagerstown Junior College in Maryland. There, he set a new school record for goals in a season (15) and in a career (26), breaking the records of Bob Breckenridge, known as “The Brit” because he was from Great Britain. He was also named to the All-Maryland JUCO team.
He played one season at Frostburg State before a knee injury ended his college career.
Lehman had a tryout for two professional soccer teams: the Columbus Crew and the Chicago Sting.
After his playing days were done, Lehman became a coach at Allegany High School for four years and helped form the Campers’ soccer program into a solid and competitive program in Western Maryland.
As word of the success of this dynamic young coach began to spread, he caught the attention of a particular high school in Ohio that wanted to turn its soccer program into a winner
In 1996, Lehman became the head coach at Hubbard High School, which is located to the east of Youngstown, Ohio, just one state away from his native Pennsylvania.
He worked hard to initially install a winning attitude with his players, the same attitude that helped fuel Lehman’s own success in the sport as well as in athletics in general throughout his career.
Within the first few seasons, that hard work ethic and positive attitude began to pay off. The teams in Hubbard’s league that once looked past the Eagles were aware of the improvement and success of Lehman’s team.
During Lehman’s tenure at Hubbard from 1996-2010, the Eagles won four league titles out of the six that they have won throughout their history. He turned the Hubbard soccer program into one of the premier programs in the state, gaining a reputation as a true soccer powerhouse in the Buckeye State.
He retired from the active coaching ranks, but Rodney continues to tutor aspiring young athletes, primarily as a tennis instructor. Several of his athletes have earned scholarships and enjoyed great success in tennis, and many are quick to credit Lehman’s tutelage for much of the success.
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Class of 2019
Class of 2019
Bedford County Sports Hall of Fame
Bedford County, Pennsylvania
Bedford County, Pennsylvania