Visitation for the former North Star coach and superintendent will take place Wednesday, Sept. 6 at Hoffman Funeral Home, 409 Main Street, Boswell, Penn. from 2-8 p.m., with a vigil for the deceased at 2 p.m. that day. Funeral Mass will take place Thursday at 10 a.m. at All Saints Church in Boswell, with Rev. Fr. John Voytek as celebrant.
Dennis P. Leyman started as an assistant wrestling coach at North Star High under Marshall Policicchio, Leyman became the head coach in 1982, a position he held until 2000. His teams went 162-100-4 in dual meets and won four District 5 championships. As Cougar head coach, Leyman had two wrestlers earn individual PIAA (Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association) wrestling titles: Gary Kaltenbaugh in 1983 and Kyle Szewczyk in 1997.
One of his Leyman's state champs weighed in on his coaching style.
"He would get the most out of anyone," Szewczyk told Eric Knopsnyder of the Tribune-Democrat. "He could maximize someone's potential, regardless of what that potential was. If it was to be a one-time regional qualifier or a state champion, he made sure you got there."
The current Waynesburg Central assistant coach added, "He was authoritative every day. He was intense. Practice was extremely organized, and he was very old school. There was no messing around. What he said was rule."
"He was one of the (North Star) coaches, along with Marsh Policicchio, that set the standard," said Tim Rosa, the Cougars current head coach. "They set the standard for what we are trying to achieve. He is in the hall of fame as a coach. He really continued that North Star tradition and is one of the guys that I look up to as a coach."
"My observation was that Dennis was a quiet, no-nonsense kind of guy who always got the most out of his talent," said Pennsylvania wrestling writer Tom Elling. "He coached in District 5, which produced many great coaches including Ed Clark, Rod Hoover, Bill Creps, to name a few. He was well-respected across the state."
For those reasons, Leyman was named the state's Class AA coach of the year in 1990 and was inducted into the District 5 Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2015.
Born March 30, 1952 in Bridgeston, N.J., Leyman went to Bridgeston High School and then to Glassboro State College in New Jersey. He then came to southwest Pennsylvania in 1977 to teach industrial arts. Leyman later became principal at North Star Middle School while continuing to coach wrestling at the high school. In 2002, he became superintendent of the district located in Somerset County in southwest Pennsylvania until his retirement in 2010.
Leyman is survived by his wife of 28 years, Martha; three sons; and ten grandchildren.
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