Dale Batzel
Northern Bedford High School has had its share of icons over the 56-year history of the jointure. One of those would be Dale Batzel, the school's first athletic director.
Dale graduated from R.P. Smith High School in 1952 where he had a storied career as a basketball player for the Smith Trojans. In an era when 1,000-point scorers were almost non-existent, Batzel led the Juniata Valley League (JVL) in scoring two straight years, finished his career with 838 points, and was named MVP of the JVL. Dale also played baseball, the only other varsity sports offered at Smith High School when he attended, and hit .378 his senior year as an outfielder on the team.
Local sports historian Ron Housel has said that according to many Smith alumni, “Batzel was considered the best basketball player in school history.”
In several occasions he scored 33 points in one game in an era where teams rarely scored more than in the 40s.
After high school, Dale enlisted in the U.S. Army during the time of the Korean conflict, and then entered Slippery Rock College where he would earn a degree in Health and Physical Education. At Slippery Rock, Batzel was on the Rocket football team as a backup tight end, despite never having played football until he entered college.
His love of athletics undoubtedly led him to the teaching and coaching profession, first for three years at Forbes Road High School, where he was the school's first basketball coach, and then to Northern Bedford, which was a merger that included his alma mater, R.P. Smith.
Overseeing the Panther athletic programs was just a part of the legacy Batzel left in the 31 years he walked the halls of Northern Bedford. He coached in various capacities in football and track & field over the course of his career and served as the guidance counselor for most of his years there.
However, he was probably best known throughout the bulk of his career as the Panthers’ basketball coach.
Batzel took over the Northern Bedford basketball program in the 1962-63 season, replacing another Bedford County Sports Hall of Fame member, Dean McGee. It didn't take him long to establish a winning team as the 1963-64 outfit had a fine 16-6 season. In 1966 Batzel led Northern Bedford to the school's first ever district team championship with a 46-42 win over a favored Berlin squad to win the District 5 Class B title. The Panthers were eliminated in the first round state playoffs by Ferndale that year.
In 1969 the Panthers won their first BCL title in a thrilling playoff game 61-59 win over Bedford when a last second Bedford score was nullified by the officials in a game played before an overflow crowd at Bedford High School.
“That had to be the highlight of his coaching career,” stated long-time friend and rival Athletic Director Dwane Gochnour.
The Panthers lost a heartbreaker to Conemaugh Township in the district final that year but the hoops program at Northern had become a major player in local circles. In the 10-year period beginning with the 1969 BCL title, only Batzel's Panthers could muscle into the BCL winners circle against a dominating run by the Royce Waltman-led Bedford team during that era. Northern won the '69, '75, and '77 titles.
Dr. Dan Ritchey, a member of the 1966 championship team, recalled that, “He had a way of really bringing out the fire, the competitiveness in us.”
Former Everett Coach Dan Shaffer remembered Batzel as being “a real competitor but he always went about it as a gentleman.”
Batzel resigned after the 1980 season and finished his era at Northern Bedford with a fine 218-77 overall record.
Probably his biggest impact locally and at Northern Bedford was as the school's athletic director for 27 years. Under his guidance, Northern Bedford added wrestling and track & field in the mid to late 1960s and numerous women's programs in the early 1970s. Dale was also instrumental in the formation of the Sideling Hill League and served as an officer in that loop. He was part of a very close-knit group of athletic directors that guided all of the county programs into the modern era and relished more than anything his camaraderie and friendship with them.
A member of that group, former Chestnut Ridge athletic director Dick Fisher stated, “He was a tremendous man to work with, very dependable, always on top of things and organized.”
After Batzel retired from Northern Bedford in 1993, he was diagnosed with a brain tumor months later and passed away on Dec. 30, 1994, at the age of 61.
He was an outstanding ambassador for Northern Bedford in general and its athletic program in particular, and he will always be a big part of the Panthers’ rich sports history.
His daughter Kami (Batzel) Arrotti is a businesswoman in the Pittsburgh area, his son Todd is a Professor at Penn State-Altoona, and his son Jeff carries on his legacy, sitting in the same seat Dale sat in as the athletic director at Northern Bedford High School.
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Northern Bedford High School has had its share of icons over the 56-year history of the jointure. One of those would be Dale Batzel, the school's first athletic director.
Dale graduated from R.P. Smith High School in 1952 where he had a storied career as a basketball player for the Smith Trojans. In an era when 1,000-point scorers were almost non-existent, Batzel led the Juniata Valley League (JVL) in scoring two straight years, finished his career with 838 points, and was named MVP of the JVL. Dale also played baseball, the only other varsity sports offered at Smith High School when he attended, and hit .378 his senior year as an outfielder on the team.
Local sports historian Ron Housel has said that according to many Smith alumni, “Batzel was considered the best basketball player in school history.”
In several occasions he scored 33 points in one game in an era where teams rarely scored more than in the 40s.
After high school, Dale enlisted in the U.S. Army during the time of the Korean conflict, and then entered Slippery Rock College where he would earn a degree in Health and Physical Education. At Slippery Rock, Batzel was on the Rocket football team as a backup tight end, despite never having played football until he entered college.
His love of athletics undoubtedly led him to the teaching and coaching profession, first for three years at Forbes Road High School, where he was the school's first basketball coach, and then to Northern Bedford, which was a merger that included his alma mater, R.P. Smith.
Overseeing the Panther athletic programs was just a part of the legacy Batzel left in the 31 years he walked the halls of Northern Bedford. He coached in various capacities in football and track & field over the course of his career and served as the guidance counselor for most of his years there.
However, he was probably best known throughout the bulk of his career as the Panthers’ basketball coach.
Batzel took over the Northern Bedford basketball program in the 1962-63 season, replacing another Bedford County Sports Hall of Fame member, Dean McGee. It didn't take him long to establish a winning team as the 1963-64 outfit had a fine 16-6 season. In 1966 Batzel led Northern Bedford to the school's first ever district team championship with a 46-42 win over a favored Berlin squad to win the District 5 Class B title. The Panthers were eliminated in the first round state playoffs by Ferndale that year.
In 1969 the Panthers won their first BCL title in a thrilling playoff game 61-59 win over Bedford when a last second Bedford score was nullified by the officials in a game played before an overflow crowd at Bedford High School.
“That had to be the highlight of his coaching career,” stated long-time friend and rival Athletic Director Dwane Gochnour.
The Panthers lost a heartbreaker to Conemaugh Township in the district final that year but the hoops program at Northern had become a major player in local circles. In the 10-year period beginning with the 1969 BCL title, only Batzel's Panthers could muscle into the BCL winners circle against a dominating run by the Royce Waltman-led Bedford team during that era. Northern won the '69, '75, and '77 titles.
Dr. Dan Ritchey, a member of the 1966 championship team, recalled that, “He had a way of really bringing out the fire, the competitiveness in us.”
Former Everett Coach Dan Shaffer remembered Batzel as being “a real competitor but he always went about it as a gentleman.”
Batzel resigned after the 1980 season and finished his era at Northern Bedford with a fine 218-77 overall record.
Probably his biggest impact locally and at Northern Bedford was as the school's athletic director for 27 years. Under his guidance, Northern Bedford added wrestling and track & field in the mid to late 1960s and numerous women's programs in the early 1970s. Dale was also instrumental in the formation of the Sideling Hill League and served as an officer in that loop. He was part of a very close-knit group of athletic directors that guided all of the county programs into the modern era and relished more than anything his camaraderie and friendship with them.
A member of that group, former Chestnut Ridge athletic director Dick Fisher stated, “He was a tremendous man to work with, very dependable, always on top of things and organized.”
After Batzel retired from Northern Bedford in 1993, he was diagnosed with a brain tumor months later and passed away on Dec. 30, 1994, at the age of 61.
He was an outstanding ambassador for Northern Bedford in general and its athletic program in particular, and he will always be a big part of the Panthers’ rich sports history.
His daughter Kami (Batzel) Arrotti is a businesswoman in the Pittsburgh area, his son Todd is a Professor at Penn State-Altoona, and his son Jeff carries on his legacy, sitting in the same seat Dale sat in as the athletic director at Northern Bedford High School.
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Class of 2015
Bedford County Sports
Hall of Fame
Class of 2015
Bedford County Sports Hall of Fame
Bedford County, Pennsylvania
Bedford County, Pennsylvania