Dwane Gochnour

D
wane Gochnour, who made his fame as the long-time athletic director at Everett High School and as a mentor to many of the county's athletic directors, was bom in Snake Spring Valley in 1930 and spent all of his life in the area.

His first baseball playing at the age of six consisted of throwing a "sponge rubber" ball against the end of the garage and then trying to catch the ball, pretending he was one of the Pittsburgh Pirates stars of that era.  In elementary school students played "mush ball" (softball).

There was no T ball, minor leagues, little leagues, pony leagues, teener leagues, or Junior Legion teams.

Dwane's first contact with organized  baseball program occurred when he entered ninth grade at Everett High School in 1943. High school baseball season consisted of eight to ten games and therefore there wasn't much time to teach fundamentals.   Dwane played second base until his senior year when he became a pitcher.

Dwane played baseball, basketball, and football while in high school and he also played baseball for the Everett American Legion team.
After high school he went to West Chester State College where he played baseball for four-years. After he graduated he spent time in the U.S. Army during the Korean War (1953 -1955).

Gochnour joined the Everett faculty in 1955 and remained there for 37 years as a teacher, administrator, and coach. The Gochnour name soon became associated with the Everett Athletic Program as he guided it for 33 years from 1959 to 1992. He also was the head baseball coach from 1956-61 and was co·champion of the Bedford County League twice.

Aside from his ties to Everett High School , Dwane coached the Everett Teener League team to championships in 1958-60 and was one of the top baseball pitchers in the area for 10 years. He played semi-pro baseball in the Bi-State League, Tri-State League, Interstate League, and the Greater Bedford County League as well as for Woodbury in the Blair County Twilight League, when adult baseball was at its height of popularity in the area.

Duane has been a mentor to many of Bedford County Athletic Directors. After retirement he has remained active in many Everett activities including starting an alumni association. Dwane and his wife Beverly have three children, two girls and a boy.


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Class of 2006
Bedford County Sports Hall of Fame
Bedford County, Pennsylvania
Class of 2006

Bedford County Sports
Hall of Fame