FREEPORT — Other than their ties to Freeport, Dan Leri and Tom Saulle don't seem to have much in common.

Leri carved out his success for the Yellowjackets on the football field and received a scholarship to Penn State.

Saulle, a graduate of Arnold High School, gained recognition at Freeport for his 20-year tenure as the girls basketball coach.

But they do have at least one similarity: Both will be inducted into the Armstrong County Hall of Fame on April 25 at Laube Hall.

"No. 1, it's a great honor to be considered," said Leri, a 1975 graduate of Freeport who helped the team make the WPIAL finals in two of his final three years. "To be inducted is a real pleasure."

"I'm real excited, to be honest," said Saulle, who led the Yellowjackets to 299 victories. "I didn't expect it."

The duo will be joined by Jamie Shaul (Kittanning, football), Fredrick Grimm (Apollo, basketball), Ron Richards (Apollo-Ridge, basketball), Kelly Morda (Ford City, basketball), Danielle Reinke (Leechburg, softball), Dennis Blose (Worthington, baseball official), Dennis Marken (Shannock Valley, softball) and Frank Pinto (Leechburg, special).

Leri lettered three years for the Yellowjackets in football and basketball, two years in baseball and one in track.

He was the focal point of the offense in the early to mid-1970s. In his senior campaign, he passed for 546 yards during the regular season and rushed for 354 on 64 carries.

His 91 points led the A-K Valley and Butler County area.

"There was a great tradition behind the football program," said Leri, who resides in Tyrone. "Every year we were well-coached and competitive.

"We only had one guy more than 200 pounds. He was 205 pounds and didn't know what to do with the extra five pounds."

Leri was a first-team all-section selection for three season, a first-team all-WPIAL star as a junior and senior and an all-state honoree as a senior.

He was a Dapper Dan high school athlete and was tapped to play in the Big 33 Game.

Leri was Freeport's punter, kicker and kickoff man. His field goal of more than 40 yards against Springdale helped the 'Jackets reach the WPIAL playoffs before they appeared in the championship game.

He saw some action as a freshman at Penn State, but an injury prevented him from playing again.

"I got some decent playing time, but I suffered a severe back injury and had some paralysis for a number of days," Leri said. "Then, I had surgery and I couldn't play any more."

Leri went on to earn a business degree and worked with human resources in the steel industry for years, then in economic development work with the Ben Franklin Partnership Program, which invested in startup companies.

He has been working at Penn State for the past 24 years, including as director of its Innovation Park, a 108-acre research park.

He and his wife Diann have four children: John (15), Faith (13), Grace (11) and Paul (9).

Saulle came to work at Freeport shortly after he graduated from Edinboro University in 1970.

He earned a master's degree in 1971, then was hired at Freeport, where he stayed for 35 years. He taught 22 years in grades 4 to 6, then spent the final 13 as a principal at Buffalo Elementary.

In that time, Saulle, 61, coached the Yellowjackets girls basketball team for 20 seasons. He compiled a 299-155 record, won three section titles and qualified for the WPIAL playoffs 10 times.

He won several coach of the year awards and coached in two all-star games.

"In my first year, we won two games and that was a school record," said Saulle. "My third year, we went .500 and didn't have a losing record since. ... My last nine years, we went to the playoffs and that was when they didn't take everyone."

When Saulle, who has three children, sons Lou and Todd and daughter, Tina, retired from Freeport, he didn't stay away from the game for long.

"Bob Darby, the athletic director at Penn State-New Kensington, asked if I was interested in coaching the women's team," said Saulle, who lives in Cabot.

The school hadn't fielded a team for 25 years and was looking to bring back women's basketball.

"I came in and he talked me into it," said Saulle, who stepped down after the 2006-07 season.

Notes: Student honorees for Freeport are Carlie Bieranowski and Nick Gentile while Karns City's honorees are Nicole Harmon and Aaron Markle. ... The banquet will begin at 5 p.m. For tickets, contact Dennis Wolfe at 724-882-3557.