By KEN HAMWEY,

Bulletin Sports Writer

Bob Pingeton, who coaches golf and girls’ basketball at Bellingham High, will be inducted into the Leicester High School Athletic Hall of Fame on Friday, Nov. 28, at the Spencer Country Inn. The event gets underway at 5:30 p.m.

The 52-year-old native of Leicester graduated in 1991 and was a three-sport star for the Wolverines, playing quarterback in football, guard in basketball and a pitcher-centerfielder in baseball. During his interscholastic career, he earned 10 letters, was named the top weekly player 12 times by the Worcester Telegram and Gazette and was selected as the school’s top athlete as a senior.

Competing in the Southern Worcester County League (SWCL) at 6-feet, 160 pounds, Pingeton was a two-time captain in basketball and baseball. 

The statistics he achieved in football include 14 touchdown passes and five rushing TDs as a senior. A two-year starter, he was mobile and did his share of scrambling as he led Leicester to a 6-4 record his senior season. 

A point guard in basketball who also played on the wing, Pingeton averaged 17 points a game as a sophomore, but his scoring average was 15.5 as a junior and 14 as a senior, primarily because he played mostly at point guard those two seasons. However, he averaged six assists a game as a senior and ended his four-year varsity career with 950 points, almost making it to the 1,000-point club. He was a key player in helping Leicester get invited twice to play in the legendary Clark Tourney and also in the State Tournament.

On the diamond, Pingeton batted third and hit .310 during a four-year varsity career. As a junior pitcher, he compiled a 4-4 record but his 1.80 earned-run average led the SWCL.

“I’m thrilled and honored to be selected for the Leicester Hall of Fame,’’ Pingeton said. “I was surprised, and I never expected to be chosen 34 years after graduation. It’s great that people remember what I achieved. I’m proud of my high school career.”

Pingeton labels himself as “a finesse player in basketball and baseball but an aggressive competitor in football.’’ He relied on speed and quickness and a high sports IQ in all three sports. He said his skills in the three sports could have been better, but playing three sports kept him busy from August to July. After the school year ended, he played three years of Senior Babe Ruth baseball.

Pingeton has two favorite memories as a Wolverine at Leicester High.

“As a senior competing against Prouty High of Spencer on Thanksgiving, I threw one touchdown pass for 20 yards and ran for a 47-yard TD after a fake handoff, giving us a 20-7 triumph. A second TD run was nullified because of a penalty. That was my last high-school football game.’’

Pingeton’s other top memory was as a senior playing against Grafton in basketball. 

“We were down by 12 points in the final quarter, but I got 10 points in the final 2½ minutes and scored the winning basket at the buzzer on a full-court lay-up,’’ he recalled. “There were about five seconds left, and we called a timeout. The pass went to a player at the free-throw line, and I was a decoy in the corner. I took a pass to the sideline, went the length of the court and scored at the buzzer. I had good speed and outran the coverage.’’

After high school, Pingeton majored in business management at Nichols College and played three years of basketball, two seasons of baseball and one year of football.

The 52-year-old Pingeton has a common-sense approach to coaching and competing. 

“Winning is important but reaching one’s potential is vital,’’ he said. “When players hit their competitive peak, then winning and enjoyment follow. “And, valuable life lessons can be learned from athletics. I want players to learn how to overcome adversity, become resilient, and lead on and off the court. Our goal is to become a team that trusts, respects and is accountable to one another.’’

When Pingeton coached at Franklin High, his golf teams won two league titles, and his girls’ tennis team won the first league championship in school history in 2024. He also coached as an assistant in boys’ basketball.

And, after three seasons of directing Bellingham’s girls’ basketball team, he’s got the hoop program heading in the right direction. The team failed to qualify for tourney play in his first year, but the Blackhawks earned playoff berths the last two seasons and finished with an overall record of 12-12 last winter. He’s rebuilt that program by starting out with two wins, then four triumphs after his second season.

Pingeton, a married Franklin resident for 26 years with two daughters, is in his second year as Bellingham High’s golf coach.

“The keys to becoming a formidable team are having players with competitive fire, a coachable nature and passion for the sport,’’ he offered. No doubt that the standards his coaches set at Leicester High, especially the late George Albro, prepared him well for coaching in very competitive leagues.