William AllenHigh School

2020 Allentown/William Allen Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony

2020 Allentown/William Allen Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony
Posted on 01/27/2020
The 2020 Allentown/William Allen Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony will be held on Tuesday, February 4th, at 7:00 mp, at J. Milo Sewards Gymnasium.  The Bethlehem Catholic vs. Allen Varsity Boys Basketball Game will follow the ceremony at 7:45 pm.  

Allentown/William Allen Hall of Fame
Class of 2020


Ron Trexler (Wrestling Head Coach, 1987-1994)
During Coach Trexler’s 7-year tenure as William Allen Wrestling Head Coach, the Canaries won over 70 matches, had 7 District XI, 5 Northeast Regional Individual Champions, and 4 PIAA Individual Medalists.  Prior to 1987, Coach Trexler was an assistant wrestling coach for 11 years to his predecessor, Don Schleicher and from 1973 – 1980, he was an assistant football coach at Trexler Junior High.  Coach Trexler is a 1966 graduate of Dieruff High School.  In his senior season, Coach Trexler earned gold in the District XI and NE Regional Wrestling Championship Tournaments while placing 4th in the PIAA State Championships.  Upon graduating from Keystone Jr. College/Millersville University in 1971, Coach Trexler returned to the Allentown School District as an industrial arts teacher which he held until he retired in 2004.  Coach Trexler was previously inducted into the Keystone College Hall of Fame in 2016.

Rich Weiss (Girls Tennis Head Coach, 1993-2018)
As the William Allen Girls Tennis Head Coach for 25 seasons, Coach Weiss coached in over 350 high school tennis matches, instructed over 175 William Allen Student-Athletes, a two-time District XI Singles Champion, one-year District XI Singles Runner-Up, two District XI Doubles Teams to a District XI 3rd place and one to a 4th place.  Coach Weiss is a 1968 graduate of William Allen High School where he participated in tennis and cross country.  In 1972, Coach Weiss graduated from Grove City College and spent the next 34 years as a math teacher at Eyer Junior/Middle School.  Coach Weiss was previously honored as the UTSA Middle States Coach of Year while Girls Tennis Head Coach at Emmaus High School from 1973-1981 where his teams compiled a 110-10-1 record which consisted a stretch of 50 consecutive victories.  

Karen Nilson (Field Hockey Head Coach, 1998-2014)
During Coach Nilson’s 17-year tenure as William Allen Field Hockey Head Coach, the Canaries were 209-132-15, qualified for District XI Tournament 16 times and PIAA State Tournament 3 times.  In 2005, William Allen finished 2nd in the PIAA 3A Field Hockey Championship held at J. Birney Crum Stadium.  In addition, the Canaries finished 2nd in the Lehigh Valley Interscholastic Athletic Conference in 2004, 2005, and 2008.  Coach Nilson additionally coached within the Allentown School District in the following capacities; Allen Assistant Girls Basketball Coach (1994 – 1999 & 2005 – 2008), Harrison Morton Boys Basketball Head Coach (2000 -2004), and Allen Assistant Softball Coach at various levels for 4 years.  Coach Nilson is a 1984 graduate of Bloomsburg University where she was a 4-year starter for the field hockey team and a captain of the 1983 Division II National Field Hockey Champions.  Currently, Coach Nilson is completing her 36th year in public education with 32 of them within the Allentown School District.  

Tom Gallagher (Girls Basketball Head Coach, 2005-2013)
As William Allen Girls Basketball Head Coach for 8 years, Coach Gallagher compiled a 104-94 record, teams qualified for District XI Tournament 5 times, and league playoffs 2 times.  In 2008, the Canaries captured the 2008 Girls Basketball 4A District XI Title and advanced to the 2008 PIAA 4A Girls Basketball Semi-Finals.  Prior to 2005, Coach Gallagher was a middle school basketball coach within the Allentown School District from 1984-2000.  Coach Gallagher is a 1965 graduate of William Allen High School where he participated in basketball under the leadership of Coach J. Milo Sewards.  Coach Gallagher was previously inducted into the following Lehigh Valley Hall of Fames: LV Knee-Hi Basketball League Hall of Fame, LV Recreation Hall of Fame, West End Youth Center Hall of Fame, and Union Terrace Athletic Club Hall of Fame.  

Doug Snyder (Boys Basketball Head Coach, 1997-2020)
During Coach Snyder’s current 23-year tenure as William Allen Boys Basketball Head Coach, the Canaries are 343-231, have qualified for PIAA State Playoffs 7 times, captured 4 District XI Championships while qualifying for District XI Tournament 20 of 23 seasons, and won 3 league titles.  Since 1997, Coach Snyder had 5 players surpass the 1,000-point career mark with Ray Barbosa holding the current school record for points scored in a career with 2,202.  Coach Snyder is a 1974 graduate of William Allen High School where he played for current Allentown/William Allen Hall of Fame members Les Kish in football and J. Milo Sewards in basketball.  For the next four years, Coach Snyder played collegiate basketball at Princeton University under the leadership of Bethlehem native and national Hall of Famer Pete Carril.  Prior to coming to William Allen, he served as Boys Basketball Head Coach at Princeton High School in NJ, where in 11 seasons his teams won 102 games and captured 3 Central Jersey Group II Championships.  Coach Snyder has previously been inducted into the following Hall of Fames; LV Basketball Hall of Fame, LV Sports Hall of Fame, and Princeton High School Sports Hall of Fame.  In addition, Coach Snyder was named Morning Call Coach of the Year on 4 occasions.  Coach Snyder has been a high school history teacher at Princeton and William Allen for the past 38 years.