2025 Festival Sports HOF Inductees Named

Jeremy Luttrell, president of the Shenandoah Apple Blossom Festival® is truly honored to name the inductees for the 2025 Apple Blossom Sports Hall of Fame for the Partlow Insurance Sports Breakfast. The Breakfast will be held in the Tolley Dental Zone at James R. Wilkins Athletic & Events Center on the Shenandoah University campus, Saturday, May 3, at 9 a.m.

RONNIE COMBS
Ronald Milton Combs (Ronnie) had a remarkable and impactful life, marked by a deep commitment to education, coaching, and ministry.  He graduated from James Wood High School, Lord Fairfax Community College, Shepherd University (physical education) and Liberty University (counseling).  
As a student athlete, he earned the Golden Helmet Award in football, lettering in football, and placing 2nd in the state in discus. In college, he continued his athletic journey by lettering in football and track and field. 
Combs began his teaching and coaching career at Robert E. Aylor Middle School.  After two years, his conversion to Christianity led his toward Christian education.  He became a dedicated teacher, coach, and administrator at Shenandoah Valley Christian Academy, were he spent 38 years.   In 2014, Ronnie joined Legacy Christian Academy, a newly established school, where he continued to inspire students and athletes.  After 50 years of teaching and coaching, he retired in 2024. 
In 2024, Legacy Christian Academy recognized his lifelong dedication to education and coaching by dedicating their new gymnasium to him, naming it the Ronald M. Combs Gymnasium. Throughout his career, Combs used sports as a platform for ministry, further strengthening his connection between faith and athletics and service to his community. 
Professional achievements:

• 1974: Defensive Back Coach at Shepherd University
• 1978-2024: High School Coach for Basketball, Soccer, and Baseball
• 1978: Ordained as a pastor
• 1988: Became a Charter Member of the National Association of Christian Counselors
• 1985: Named National Christian High School Coach of the Year
• 1990: Recognized by ESPN Scholastic Sports of America
• 1994: Gatorade Coaches Card Award
• 1996: ODAC Soccer Coach of the Year
• 2000: ODAC Basketball Coach of the Year
• 2002: Inducted into the Wendell Dick James Wood Hall of Fame.
• 2017: NACA Hall of Fame Inductee

Coaching accolades:

• Over 1,000 career wins.
• DAC Coach of the Year.

• President of Phi Epsilon Kappa.
• National
  • 8x NACA Basketball Champions
  • 19 NACA Basketball Final Four appearances
  • 2x NACA Soccer Champions
• State
  • 7x ODAC Basketball State Champions
  • 5x ODAC Soccer State Champion
  • 4x ODAC Baseball State Champion
• Coached 14 Basketball All Americans

​BUDDY ARMEL
 
Buddy Armel would become synonymous with area stock car racing, and he would take his first victory at his home track of Virginia’s Winchester speedway in the summer of 1963. His name would become a fixture at area speedways.  
His career began with the old “30X90” cars, a predecessor to today’s Sprint cars. Buddy began to win when he went back to driving the No.3 S3 for Lee Shultz.  He also drove for car owners, Jerry Smith and Charlie Tabor.   He was an aggressive driver that would be willing to “trade paint” at just about any moment on the racetrack.  He was admired but feared by his competitors. 
Armel took wins in Maryland at Hagerstown, and the Virginia ovals of Winchester, Saluda (now Virginia Motor Speedway,) and Eastside.  In Pennsylvania he had wins at Bedford, Selinsgrove, and old St. Thomas Speedway. 
Buddy, his wife, Betty. and their four children Tony, Brenda, Tommy and Barbara were all heavily involved in Buddy’s racing. Tony was a rising star, in his own right, but tragically passed away in 1981. Tommy was Hagerstown’s 1987 Daredevil and 1992 Semi Late champion and the 2009 Winchester Late Model champion, while Brenda was Winchester’s U-Car champion in 2013.
 
The wins were many, the championships were plenty, but through it all Buddy was a racer. He didn’t race to make friends. He was there to win.  He was able to accomplish that by those who aided his career for nearly four decades. It is said the Armel family has a bond, like no other, and to this day the phrase, “It’s an Armel thing”, will last forever.
Professional achievements:

• All-time late model winner at Winchester – 101 feature wins
• Winchester track titles – 1965, 1070, 1973, 1976, 1977, 1980, 1984
• Hagerstown Speedway – 81 feature wins
• Hagerstown Speedway five-time track titles – 1971, 1975,1976, 1977, 1989
• Winchester 200 – 1975, 1978
• Win at Johnny Roberts Memorial – 1978 
• Win at Conococheague 100 - 1983
• Ronnie McBee tribute at Hagerstown – 1986
• Lee Stultz Memorial – 1988
• Armel’s last season of his career – left with 202 feature wins - 1991
• Inducted into the Auto Racing Club of Hagerstown (ARCH) 1996

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