Hall of Fame
Ralph Moerschbacher was a five-time Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Champion and a three-time National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) National Championship qualifier in men's swimming. He won the 200-yard freestyle at the PSAC Championships in 1968, 1969, and 1970; the 500-yard freestyle in 1968; and was a member of the 400-yard freestyle relay team that won the conference title in 1967. He is the only BU men's swimmer to win three consecutive PSAC titles.
He finished his career with 37 individual wins and 56 overall victories and was team captain during the 1970 season. He was listed in Outstanding College Athletes of America in 1969 and 1970.
Moerschbacher started his career during the 1966-67 season on the freshman team (freshmen could not swim varsity per PSAC rules) and went on to be a member of the 400-yard freestyle relay team that won the PSAC Freshman Championship. He set the Bucknell pool record in the 100-yard freestyle and the Slippery Rock pool record in the 200-yard freestyle. He then won the PSAC Championship in the 200-yard freestyle, with a new PSAC conference record, in 1967-68. He was also the PSAC runner up in the 500-yard freestyle and the 400-yard freestyle relay. He set team records in the 200 free, 500 free, and 400 free relay and set the Trenton pool record in the 100 free. He went on to compete in the NAIA Nationals.
In 1968-69, he was the PSAC Champion in the 200 free and the 500 free, qualifying in both for the NAIA Nationals. Finally, during the 1969-70 season, he was the PSAC Champion in the 200 free, and finished third at the PSAC Championships in the 100 free. He posted team records in the 200 free, 400 medley relay, and 400 free relay. And, for the third consecutive season, he qualified for NAIA Nationals. He also served as President of the Husky Club that year.
After his collegiate career, he went on to serve as a long-time NCAA, YMCA, and PIAA swimming official. He also served many years as an official and officer for the Selinsgrove Summer Swim Team and the Greater Susquehanna Valley Swimming and Diving League.
Moerschbacher served in the United States Army following his graduation from Bloomsburg. After his military service, he began a 44-year career as a sales representative in the building industry. He is currently employed by Shusters Building Components in Irwin, Pennsylvania.
He married a fellow Bloomsburg graduate, Russella (Rusty) Hummel, in 1970. Rusty is retired after a career of teaching in the Selinsgrove Area School District. They are the proud parents of two daughters, Sara and Jenny, who participated in Summer, YMCA, and PIAA swimming programs. Jenny swam during her collegiate years at Lafayette College in the Patriot League. Sara lives in Downingtown, Pennsylvania, with her husband, Josh Brosious, and their children, Audrey, Colton, and Scarlett. Jenny and her husband, Joe Molinelli, live in Mountain View, California, with their son, Callen.
