City of Champions

Considered one of the premier defensive players of all time, Bill Mazeroski is most remembered for a home run.

His walk off home run in the ninth inning of the seventh game of the 1960 World Series off Yankees pitcher Ralph Terry gave the Pirates their first championship in 35 years and created an indelible moment in sports history.

Maz spent his entire 17-year career with the Pirates, was named an All Star 10 times, and holds the record for most double plays at second base.

A key offensive threat for a Steelers dynasty that won four Super Bowls in six years in the 1970s, Franco Harris attracted an “army” of local fans and became the first African American and first Italian American to be named Super Bowl MVP.

He may be best known for his role in one of the most acclaimed and controversial plays in all of sports history.

The “Immaculate Reception” saw Harris make a shoestring catch of a ricocheted ball to give the Steelers an improbable last second playoff victory in 1972. A nine-time Pro Bowler and Hall of Famer, no Steeler has worn #32 since he retired.

In 1954, the Pirates claimed 20-year-old outfielder Roberto Clemente from the Brooklyn Dodgers’ Montreal farm club for $4,000 in the minor league draft. He had a brilliant career with the team, amassing 3,000 hits.

In 1961, Clemente won his first batting title, hitting .351. He added three more titles in 1964, 1965, and 1967. Named MVP in 1966, Clemente batted .317 with 29 home runs and 119 RBIs.

Clemente owned right field, his powerful and precise arm earned him 12 consecutive Gold Glove awards. Known for his off-field humanitarian efforts as well, Clemente broke barriers in baseball for Latin ballplayers.  

From the time he first stepped on the ice for the Penguins in 1984, until his second and final retirement in 2006, Lemieux contributed at the highest level.

Though he battled health problems and cancer, he still notched 690 goals and 1,033 assists in 915 regular season games.

Immediately inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame upon his first retirement in 1997, he earned five Stanley Cups with the Pens (two as a player and three as an owner).

Lemieux’s career also includes Canada and World Cup championships and Olympic gold won in 2002. It is no wonder that Mario Lemieux is known as “Le Magnifique,” the magnificent.

Cash achieved excellence in basketball at every level, starting with high school All-American honors while at McKeesport High School.

She led the University of Connecticut to two NCAA National Championships, was a four-time WNBA All-Star, and has three WNBA championship rings and two Olympic gold medals to her name.

Cash has continued her winning ways off the court, serving as a WNBA executive and as one of the first women in the front office for an NBA team.

Born in Chartiers (now Carnegie), this hometown hero spent 21 years in the majors. Arguably the greatest Pirate player, Wagner retired in 1917 with a .327 career batting average.

Eight times the National League batting champ, he hit over .300 for 16 consecutive seasons. A defensive force at shortstop, Wagner’s quickness also made him a threat on the bases. He stole 722 in his career.

The golden age of professional boxing in Pittsburgh occurred in the early 1940s. Between July 1939 and November 1941, five Western Pennsylvania boxers won championships in five of eight traditional weight classes.

At no other time in boxing history did one city so dominate the professional boxing scene.

High school All-American, Heisman Trophy winner, Hall of Famer – Tony Dorsett achieved at every level of football. A native of Rochester, Pa., he competed for Hopewell High School, earning Parade and Scholastic All-American honors.

His senior year, the University of Pittsburgh captured the national championship and Dorsett won the Heisman, as well as the Walter Camp, Maxwell Club, Football News, and other Player of the Year awards.

Drafted by the Cowboys in the first round, Dorsett captured NFL Rookie of the Year honors in 1977 and played in two Super Bowls, five NFC championship games, and four Pro Bowls. He racked up 16,347 combined net yards and 91 touchdowns in his Hall of Fame career.

Starring first as a player at Pittsburgh’s Seton LaSalle High School and Penn State, this two-time Olympic medalist began her coaching career at Oakland Catholic High School.

McConnell Serio led the team to three state championships and began an accomplished professional career in the WNBA, where she succeeded first as a player and then as coach. 

Leaving the WNBA to come home to Pittsburgh, she coached first at Duquesne University, then at the University of Pittsburgh, leading both programs to the post season.