ED STECKLEY CLASS OF '61 YEAR OF INDUCTION: 2011 Ed Steckley played baseball throughout his youth graduating from Little League to Babe Ruth to Steinert High and American Legion and then came some college, Unlimited League and Minor League hardball before he switched over to competitive softball. At Steinert, Steckley played baseball and football, earning all-city and all-state acclaim on the diamond as an upperclassman. "In 1961, the SHS baseball team won the district," Steckley remembered. "We played South River in the state playoffs and won 3-1." Steckley, a pitcher who says his "get-out pitch was the curveball," compiled a record of 12-4 as a Spartan. "Another highlight was a 16-strikeout game at Steinert against Mount Holly High School," Steckley noted. "We won 2-0 on a two-hit game." He played at Trenton Junior College and then in the Minor League with the Tampa Braves. Knee surgery ended his Minor-League career. He found a renaissance in sports playing for many years in the Class A softball leagues for such famous teams as Cregar's, Palazzo's, Zip's and DeLorenzo's. "I was on the W.C. Fielders team that went 7-2 and finished fifth at the Class A National Tournament in Kingston, N.C.," Steckley recalled. "There were 144 teams at that tournament." He also had success as a coach of youth sports. "When I wasn’t playing baseball and softball I kept busy coaching freshman baseball and football in the Trenton School District," he said. "We won eight titles in baseball and six in football." He knows first-hand just how special those scholastic years can be. "I would like to thank SHS Coaches (Bob) Pivo (Pivovarnick) and (Dick) Leber for giving me the knowledge to further my baseball career," Steckley says. "I will never forget them and SHS for giving me the chance to perform in college and in semi-pro baseball." "My life in SHS sports was extremely rewarding. I will never forget the greatest times of my life." RETURN TO THE HALL OF FAME MEMBERS PAGE