Adieu à l’hiver (Farewell to winter)
Winter Season Comes To An End With Manor Losses In State Semifinals And Award Nights Celebrations In Tri-Valley And Sullivan West
By RICHARD A. ROSS
“In the end it’s not the years in your life that matter, but the life in your years.”
Abraham Lincoln
Final glimpses of winter: Top row: Livingston Manor's Mike Mills goes up for a shot in the Wildcats' 67-55 state semifinal loss to Madrid-Waddington. Mills hit seven treys and scored 35. Manor's Kenny Fisk dribbles amidst traffic and a poignant moment of finality on the right. Tri-Valley award winners top row left to right: James Pugh, Gavin DuBois, Greg Swarthout, Autumn Bender, Vicky Tingley, Dominique Darby, Jim Bernstein, Brendan Tierney, Eugene Morton and Ryan Erts. Bottom Row Dorothy Monforte, Brittany Rennison, Amber Buley, John Monforte, Kyle Rogers, Kevin Palko, Jared Ratner, Katlynn Greffrath, Sabrena Smith, Erin Smith, Sarah Coney, Liz Bracken. Sullivan West winners top row left to right: Rachel Deppa, Hannah Feinman, Reed Scott, Kendall Menges, Drew Billard. Bottom Row: Jenna Keesler, Xhesika Lushaj, Stephanie Hauschild, Sydney Sipple and John Masten. Not pictured: Matt Cardona
SULLIVAN COUNTY, NY—All things must pass and thus departs the winter to make way for spring. And what a winter it was not just in terms of its unusual trappings of weather, but in terms of its momentous milestones in local athletics. For the Livingston Manor Wildcats boys and girls teams heading into the unchartered territory of the ethereal ethers of the State Final Four, the hope was to send winter off with a pair of historic state titles on the hardwood; a resounding finish to the best season evinced by boys and girls basketball players in the school’s history.
Though both squads fell short of making it to the finals, they did ink a place in school history with best-ever performances in the sport. Both squads enjoyed incredibly noble runs before the 16-6 boys fell to Section Ten’s Madrid-Waddington 67-55 at Glens Falls, while the 12-9 girls were defeated by Section Two’s Argyle 53-26 in Troy. Just like last spring when the softball team claimed its second consecutive state title and the boys added the allure of their first baseball state crown, the small school with the biggest of hearts that borders the Willowemoc swelled with pride which spilled over to neighboring towns and communities who joined in the support and accolades for the two teams’ remarkable achievements.
Now with basketball over, many of the same young men and women will pick up their gloves and head to the ball fields to defend their state supremacy and hopefully thereupon add an historic coda to this year with success.
Having not been privy to the Manor’s games that were a part of these postseason glorious runs, I will not offer a recap thereof as that has been done by others who bore direct witness to the proceedings. Photos have been sent my way by Nick Piatek of sportsinsightsny.com and Alex Rau of pixteronline.com and I am thankful to both for those photographic gems.
Manor’s extension of the winter season came in the same week as both Tri-Valley and Sullivan West were celebrating their winter success stories on March 14 and 15 respectively at awards night celebrations.
Tri-Valley Honors Its Winter Best
Tri-Valley Athletic Director Derek Adams welcomed the audience of athletes, coaches, parents, school personnel, administrators and School Board members before Junior Varsity boys basketball coach Jason Closs introduced his team comprised of five sophomores and six freshmen. Varsity coach Brian Tingley followed suit to laud his team that went 12-6 in the regular season before falling in a sectional quarterfinal to Fallsburg. “We want next year to be even better,” said Tingley who noted that during basketball season he literally spent more time with his team than he did with his family. Tingley noted that his sophomores and juniors got a lot of valuable experience this year while helping the team rebound from its sub.500 mark a year ago to return to sectionals. Tingley lauded all of his players one by one before announcing the award winners, Gavin Dubois was named as the teams Most Improved Player, while James Pugh won accolades as the team’s Most Valuable Defensive Player. Finally, Greg Swarthout was accorded the designation as the team’s Most Valuable Offensive Player.
Varsity boys and girls indoor track Coaches Joe and Missy Iatauro had much to be proud of. The former played the part of spokesperson as usual for the iconic duo as he thanked his coaching staff including Scott Grey whose son Garrett just finished seenth in the nation in Division II, while Ryan Loughney won his second consecutive national Division II title in the weight throw. Both attend Ashland University in Ohio. Iatauro recapped the season which began on November 19 and which took his runners, jumpers and throwers to Yale, Cornell and the Armory as well as to local meets at West Point and Sullivan County Community College. Iatauro had great praise for each of his team members as he lauded first the boys and then the girls who took turns gracing the stage.
The girls squad was chosen as a NYSPHSAA Scholar Athlete winner for its cumulative GPA of 90 percent or better. They were ranked fifth in NYS, won the trifecta of Division V, Sullivan County and Section Nine. This was their sixth Section Nine title in seven years and their third County title in a row. Division titles have been literally too many to count. Iatuaro announced that his wife Missy will be the recipient of the Section Nine Service Award. This year’s indoor track award recipients were as follows:
Boys: Jim Bernstein, MVP, Brendan Tierney, MIP and Eugene Morton Coaches Award. Girls: Autumn Bender MVP, Vickty Tingley MIP and Dominique Darby Coaches Award. Bernstein won the Section Nine state qualifier in the mile and finished 13th at states. He was 40th at Nationals. Darby won Section Nine’s shot put and weight throw as well as the state qualifier. She finished 16th at states, second at the Millrose games and competed at Nationals. Darby set a school record in the weight throw (48-5) at the Yale Inivitational. Tingey set a school record in the pole vault at 7-6 at the state qualifier. Brooke Gillette also qualified for nationals. Katlynn Greffrath broke the school record in the 55 with a time of 7.5, while Brittany Rennison broke the 1994 school record in the 600M run held until now by Julie Ehrets. Mareena DiMilia set a record in the shot put (38-11.75).
Ski Coach Tamara Coney lauded her team which had to adapt to a season that lacked snow. She thanked the Erts family for their photography and provision of food throughout the season. Award winners included Sarah Coney and Ryan Erts MVP’s and Liz Bracken and Devon Bagley as recipients of the Coaches Awards.
Cheerleading coach Leighanne Walsh praised her team’s third place finish in the OCIAA Cheerleading Competition in Division II. Five of the 11 girls on the squad were seniors. After losing a number of team members after football, the squad had to retool its routine for the diminished numbers. Brittany Rennison was named as the team’s MVP, while Dorothy Monforte was chosen as MIP. Amber Buley received the Coaches Award.
Wrestling Coach Mike March talked about the improvement of the program which just completed its second year. This year the team hosted two home matches for the first time, won three dual meets and competed against Division I wrestlers at Cornwall and Middletown. Award winners included John Monforte, MVP; Kyle Rogers, MIP; Jared Ratner and Kevin Palko Coaches Awards.
The Junior Varsity girls basketball team was lauded for their perfect 14-0 season by guest speaker Gary TerBush. Each received a trophy as the team was cited for its fine intensity and great chemistry. Coach Jerry Stevens offered his words of praise to the squad which combined with the varsity for an outstanding record of 32-2 this seaon.
Varsity Girls Basketball Coach John Tenbus lauded his 18-2 Lady Bears, recipients of the NYSPHSAAScholar Athlete Honors. The team won Division V for the third straight year and returned to the Section Nine finals for the third consecutive time. Under Tenbus’ watch they have amassed a 36-4 record. Despite losing to private school behemoth John A. Coleman Catholic in the Class C finals, the Lady Bears hold the bragging rights to the public school Section Nine Class C title by dint of their semifinal victory over Tuxedo. The team was the number-two seed in the Section Nine tourney and defeated Fallsburg before vanquishing the Lady Tornadoes. “We define our own success,” noted Tenbus who praised his team for its work ethic. “We werent’ always the most talented team, but we were the hardest working team,” he noted. Tenbus went on to praise his players one by one with special words for his seniors Erin Smith, Sarah Schneyer and Hope Costa. Smith played her best game against Coleman as she scored half of the team’s points. Schneyer played big minutes off the bench and Costa, though injured came to every practice and gave her supporr to the team without fail. Tenbus awarded a trio of players that included Erin Smith as the teams Most Improved Player, Sabrena Smith as the team’s Outstanding Defensive Player and Katlynn Greffrath as the team’s Most Outstanding Offensive Player.
A compelling musical slide show by this writer concluded the evening.
Bulldogs Honored For Fine Winter Efforts
One night later it was Sullivan West’s turn to celebrate its fine winter athletes and milestones. Principal Margie Tenbus welcomed the crowd, thanked the winter athlete and in particular the seniors for their commitment and accomplishments in what she defined as the longest sports season of the year. Athletic Director Dave Franskevicz echoed her words and introduced Shawn Bailey to sing his sonorous rendition of the National Anthem. Franskevicz noted the boys basketball team’s return to the Section Nine tournament and its selection as a NYSPHSAA Scholar Athlete designation. He also praised the school’s state meet participants that included Rachel Deppa and Todd Roeder in track as well as Drew Billard and Kendall Menges in skiing.
Indoor track Coach Ron Bauer brought the girls team to the stage and praised their hard work despite their diminished numbers. A total of ten girls reached the state qualifier meet. Deppa won Section Nine in the 1500 racewalk and qualified for her third consecutive trip to states. She finished 13th at states and 27th at Nationals. She was chosen as the Most Valuable Winter Indoor Track Athlete. Hannah Feinman was named as the team’s Most Valuable Winter Indoor Field Athlete. Feinman was third in Section Nine in the triple jump and sixth in the 55 hurdles. She was part of the gold medal win of the 1600 relay at the Sullivan County championships. In boys indoor track Reed Scottt won the honors as the Most Valuable Winter Indoor Track Athlete. Scott was the county winner in the 3200. Todd Roeder was the recipient of the award as the Most Valuable Winter Indoor Track Field Athlete. Roeder was 21st at states in the weight throw.
Alpine Skiing Coach Lionel Billard talked about his team that had three of its members qualify for sectionals in Drew Billard, Kendall Menges and Kassie Thelman. Billard took fifth in Section Nine, while Menges was eighth Thelman just missed the state meet.. Billard finished 34th at states in the Giant Slalom. Menges was 42nd in states in the Slalom. Billard reminisced about his six years with Menges and Thelman and the fine times they’d shared. Billard was assisted this year by former Monticello High School standout Richie Heins. Kendall Menges and Drew Billard were accorded the honor of being named Most Valuable Skiers, while Jimmy Finn received the award as the Most Improved Skier.
Junior Varsity Cheerleading Coach Daniela Fox praised her squad and thanked varsity coach Kelly Schadt. Schadt talked about how most of her team had never even seen a competitive cheerleading squad or been a part of a cheerleading competition. They had to start off by “experiencing conditioning like they’ve never had before.” They had to learn more difficult stunting sequences and choreography. The team had to learn to recover from losing team members and moving on. Schadt noted that while she was sad to see the seniors leave, she looked forward to looking with the core group of cheerleaders next year. Schadt cited Jenna Keesler as the team’s Most Improved Cheerleader who made great strides from last season and improved her strength and skill. Xhesika Lushaj won the Most Spirited Cheerleader award. “She is remarkably open to being coached and learning something new. I’ve seen her take an elbow or at times a whole cheerleader to the face and then get up smiling,” said Schadt. “She puts everything she has to every cheer, jump and stunt.”
Junior Varsity Girls Basketball Coach Brad Molusky talked about his small squad that played together and played a very disciplined brand of basketball, particularly at the defensive end of the court. “I’m very proud of them and we had a lot of fun. Win or lose these ladies played together, “ he noted. Molusky thanked the parents and the varsity girls team to help them at practice and at the Saturday morning program. Molusky thanked Varsity Coach Pat Donovan and his assistant Kurt Scheibe as well.
Girls Varsity Basketball Coach Pat Donovan cited a host of reasons to “Love the game,” a litany of things that Donovan felt represented the 2011-12 Lady Bulldogs. “From the very first practice we had to work hard to fill the void left by six graduating seniors. This season was one of rebuilding, learning and belonging,” noted Donovan who said that both he and the team felt a sense of accomplishment. This year’s team was comprised of five new sophomores, one freshman and four returning players had a tough act to follow. The Lady Bulldogs accrued two victories over Family School and one hard-fought win over Roscoe. Sullivan West’s girls helped raise over $950 dollars out of the $3,000 dollars accrued for the Catskill Regional Oncology Unit’s ongoing work in the battle against Cancer. The girls played against state-ranked Tri-Valley at SCCC as part of the Fourth Annual Coaches Vs. Cancer Classic. It was the school’s fourth year participating in the event which Donovan helped to initiate.
Senior Stephanie Hauschild was named as this year’s recipient of the Coaches Award, while sophomore Sydney Sipple was named Miss Basketball 2011-2012.
Junior Varsity Boys Basketball Coach Scott Randazzo talked about his team’s 8-9 season that included one run of 5-0. “Our goals were attained and I believe the kids did a wonderful job this year. From day one to the end of the season every one of these young men improved in many aspects of the game,” he noted. I’m very proud of them all and hopefully we can continue to build on the foundation that Coach Nober has built on the varsity level,” he noted.
Varsity Basketball Coach Bruce Nober began by saying, “From the first day of practice I knew we had the talent for a successful season. There were five seniors returning from the 2010-11 season and there were four talented underclassmen that were coming off a winning J-V team,” he noted. After a sluggish 1-3 start, the team’s fiery come-from-behind win over Monticello would prove to provide the needed spark. “The game turned the season around and gave the players a winning mindset that they used for the rest of the season,” he added. The team’s 29 points in the fourth quarter that brought the epic 58-50 win was a great tonic for the eventual 11-7 record that would propel the Bulldogs back to sectionals after a 1-17 season a year ago. The third-seeded Bulldogs fell to number six Spackenkill in a sectional home quarterfinal by the score of 68-60. Nober thanked his assistant coaches Randazzo and Everett Saul. He saved his greatest vote of thanks for Cliff Kelly, his high school coach and the person that mentored him when he was coaching at the junior varsity level. “Other than my parents or grandparents, he’s had the single most important influence on my life.”Nober went on to thank the team manager Justin Dorman who never missed a practice and always had a smile on his face.
Nober introduced his team. E.J. Franskevicz averaged 9.8 points per game. He was a team captain and the second leading scorer. He was a solid offensive and defensive player . Andrew Parsons added a toughness that we lacked and gave us an great inside presence. Shawn Bailey is an incredibly smart and talented young man who came off the bench for us and gave us valuable minutes. Adam Talbi worked very hard in practice to make us a better team. Brad Hemmer continued to improve each week and by the end of the season I had confidence that he could handle the ball against tough competition. Sawyer Erlwein scored 6.5 points per game and was our most versatile player. Patrick Pierce improved every game. He was a sophomore but it was clear that he belonged from the beginning. I didn’t expect him to contribute as much as he did this year. He started 17 games and scored 8.5 points per game.
Awards were as follows: Matt Cardona was named the team’s Most Valuable Offensive Player. He averaged 11.4 points per game and scored 217 points. He led the scoring in seven out of 19 games. In the crucial Monticello game he scored 27 points including five three pointers in the fourth quarter. Nober noted, “It was one of the most impressive performances in a quarter I’ve ever seen. He carried us at times.
John Masten was named as the team MVP. “He was always the hardest working player on the floor whether in practice or in a game. He was our best defensive player and was usually matched up against the opposing team’s best player,” noted Nober. Without a true point guard at the beginning of the year he was forced to play that role, one that he relished and excelled at. He was our captain and a great leader. Without him on the floor we were a different team. He started every game and averaged 7.2 points per game and ended the season with 129 points.
The evening concluded with a musical slide show that chronicled the Sullivan West winter cavalcade of sports and highlight moments.
For albums of the awards ceremonies from Tri-Valley and Sullivan West, visit www.sportsinsights.smugmug.com
Top ‘Cats
Livingston Manor Boys Win First-Ever Section Nine Basketball Title By Downing Five-Time Champion Coleman; Lady Wildcats End Drought Dating From 1999 With Win Over Roscoe
Boys: Livingston Manor 70, John A. Coleman Catholic 52
Girls: Livingston Manor 53, Roscoe 31
By RICHARD A. ROSS
“In my experience, there is only one motivation, and that is desire. No reason or principle contain it or stand against it.”- Jane Smiley
Livingston Manor tands alone as the only Sullivan County School to capture a Section Nine basketball championship this winter. They didn't win one, they won two as the boys garnered their first-ever title while the girls ended the drought which had dated back to 1999.
NEW PALTZ, NY–Rarely do I deem to write about things I am not privy to personally. But in the case of the extraordinary accomplishments wrought by the boys and girls basketball teams of Livingston Manor, a place I spent the better part of two decades of my live at as an English and Journalism teacher, yearbook adviser and Number One sports fan for the legions of kids who passed through my classes, I make an exception.
Given the rigors of my enterprise and the need to draw a line around the circle of schools I cover relentlessly, I have had to eschew Manor sports as well as those played in neighboring Roscoe. It hasn’t been an easy decision, especially given my history with the school and the community. These days, aside from the infrequent occasions when athletes from the Town of Rockland happen to cross my paths, I have missed out on the wealth of talent and heart exuded by these kids.
This narrative contains no blow-by-blow description of the boys epic first-ever Section Nine basketball championship brought about by a dramatic 70-52 win over five-time consecutive winner John A. Coleman Catholic. I was at Glens Falls last March to witness the triumph of Maple Grove over Coleman, a victory of a tiny public school like Livingston Manor over the private monolith that had been knocking on the state championship doorway for several years, though it failed to garner the Holy Grail of the hardwood.
In my days at Livingston Manor, there were rich years and lean ones in boys basketball. The finest team of the era, a 1988 squad lost a Section Nine heartbreaker to Sugar Loaf which was armed with the talented and huge Scott Nesbitt. Subsequent years brought players who could tally large numbers of points, but the glory eluded the boys teams. Even a winless season stood out as an ignominious reminder of the shortfall.
But all of that changed with Manor’s win over Coleman this year. Now, enshrined in the school’s athletic history, side by side with the boys baseball state championship in the spring of 2011, this will serve as a reminder of what finally came to pass and serve as a beacon of light for those who will follow in years to come about what is possible when a team marshals its will and devotes itself to a unified purpose.
This team, led by its nexus of seniors including Troy Correa, Mike Mills and Kenny Fisk have re-written Manor boys sports history. No doubt there is more yet to come before they graduate this June including a shot at a repeat state title in baseball and who knows…this basketball season isn’t over yet as of this writing, whether a trip to Glens Falls is not also in the offing.
Livingston Manor Girls basketball circa 1999. It's been a long time since then but the glory is back.
As for the girls team, this subject may be even closer to my heart. For it was the girls at LMCS who carried the banner of glory during my tenure there as the reproduced yearbook pages from 1999 will attest.
For three straight years from 1997-1999 they ruled the then Western Sullivan League and went on to win Section Nine titles over Jeff-Youngsville twice, sandwiching a win over S.S. Seward in between.
Annual first round regional losses to state behemoth Haldane aside, a team I always felt those girls could have beaten had they ever committed themselves to the task as resolutely as they had to winning the Section.
But back then, they always seemed satisfied to have captured the Section Nine plaque as they looked forward to making great inroads in the looming softball season, rather than delaying its onset with more basketball.
Ever since Kevin Clifford took over the reins of the girls basketball team nine years ago, Coleman has been the elephant in the room, knocking out his Lady Wildcats six times out of the prior eight years en route over the past two years to state championships.
The Section finally relented and moved them up to Class C where they would dethrone Tri-Valley this year as they begin their quest for a third straight title.
Clifford and boys coach Charlie Hicks have co-authored the softball team dynasty that reached its long-sought goal of a state championship in 2010 with a 2-1 title win over Bolivar-Richberg. Last year they repeated as state champs with an 8-0 win over Batavia Notre Dame.
During my tenure at LMCS, Coach Bill Nolf’s 1990 team got to the Eastern Regional finals before losing. So again, this marks a new era.
In this year’s girls basketball championship names like Maggi Calo, Samantha Scott and Monay Allen would stand out in the sports column narratives. But for a team, be it a boys or girls squad to come through to win a title, it is never a matter of a select few players, but rather a total team effort.
I salute the boys and girls teams for their unforgettable accomplishments. I wish each and every player continued success in all of their future endeavors and I know full well that these experiences have strengthened them for life’s adversity that visits us all in one form or another.
Glad that my cohort Nick Piatek was at the girls game to record the events. His photo album is located at:
www.sportsinsights.smugmug.com.
Epilogue As Prologue
A Reflective Perspective On A Season’s End And The Seeds For New Beginnings
By RICHARD A. ROSS
“Success comes from knowing that you did your best to become the best that you are capable of becoming.”
John Wooden
Tri-Valley fans laud with adoration their beloved Lady Bears at the conclusion of the Class C finals wherein undefeated John A. Coleman Catholic prevailed 56-28. Below senior Erin Smith does her best in vying against the dominant Lady Statesmen. Liberty Coach Mike Salvia takes a time out in the late going as the Indians make a semifinal exit by losing to Burke 81-28.
SULLIVAN COUNTY, NY—Needless to say, there will always be a sorrowful finality to a season’s end and the stunning realization that what had been so all-consuming, vital and enlivening is now over. Watching another team celebrate in its triumph of the moment can elicit tears and a sense of unimaginable disappointment on the part of the team which did not prevail.
Even having given one’s all in coming up short against a stronger or more talented adversary, it is hard in that moment to register the value of prior achievements and to feel the pride that is due for the uncanny efforts which propelled a team forward into the rarified atmosphere of vying for a title.
It is the stark sequential and antithetical unfolding of those prior unbridled joys and the subsequent hollow feeling of immense disappointment that can seem so unfathomable, especially for seniors whose years of play have come to an end.
Fortunately, such feelings of despondency are short in duration. As Psalm 30 so aptly notes: “Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.”
For more than a decade I have been a fixture at Section Nine tournament games. Years back when I was documenting the proceedings for riverreportersports.com, I literally camped out at college venues and covered every boys and girls game from Class D to AA. My love for the game is immense which is why from the earliest scrimmages to the state championships I have logged untold miles to bear witness to its stunning theatre and to laud its participants.
I am the only New York State sportswriter to have won the Basketball Coaches Association Of New York’s Golden Media Award for Outstanding Coverage of High School basketball every year since the award’s inception in 2005. Every year I have been honored to have at least one coach in Section Nine nominate me for that honor and I hope my streak continues.
Now that I run my own enterprise wherein my livelihood is entirely dependent on a profitable return from my expenses and time, I concentrate on the schools within my coverage circle. Even so, with so many games happening simultaneously, many of them at a great distance, I have had to become far more selective given the price of gas and the inordinate amount of time I spend on any games I cover.
My readers who pore over and hopefully patronize the albums of hundreds of photos that were worked on one by one and read the lengthy, thoughtful narratives that describe not just the games themselves but the history, color and enduring significance of them, appreciate the intensity I bring to this endeavor.
As such, my sectional season this year brought me to only four games: Fallsburg’s boys quarterfinal win over Tri-Valley, Tri-Valley’s girls quarterfinal and semifinal wins over Fallsburg and Tuxedo and Sullivan West’s boys quarterfinal loss to Spackenkill. Needless to say the number of games I covered during the regular season was not far removed from the number of nights on which games were played. All of this while reckoning with skiing, wrestling, indoor track and cheerleading as well.
On the night of the Class C finals at New Paltz wherein Tri-Valley would try to defend its 2011 title against Private school monolith Coleman Catholic, I was at Alice Tully Hall in Lincoln Center about to enjoy the rare privilege of attending and reveling in my daughter Hannah’s Juilliard Orchestra Concert. She’s a senior violist and this along with her upcoming April senior recital would be too precious to miss.
This concert experience which will live on in my heart and mind as a moment of incredible pride and joy, also gave rise to some thoughts akin to this piece’s subject. In my stead, Nick Piatek went to SUNY New Paltz to visually document Tri-Valley’s final game of its 18-2 heroic season, a 56-28 loss to undefeated John A. Coleman Catholic.
Then racing from New Paltz, to Goshen, Nick also got to capture some second half photos of Liberty’s noble season denouement in its 81-28 loss to defending state champion John S. Burke Catholic. Visit his photo albums on www.sportsinsights.smugmug.com and reward his presence therein by purchasing some of his remarkable photographs.
Missing from our coverage this past week was the stunning 77-60 Monticello boys quarterfinal win over #2 Saugerties that preceded its 73-48 road semifinal loss to #3 Marboro, as well as the Lady Monties uplifting 48-42 quarterfinal home win over Goshen that was a forerunner to a season-ending 69-16 loss to top-seeded Cornwall and the Liberty girls 61-34 quarterfinal loss to Onteora.
Fallsburg’s 79-60 loss to eventual repeat champion Pine Plains was another game never reached. With no trip planned to Glens Falls this year for the first time in my sportswriting career, it is clear that my basketball season is, like that of the aforementioned teams, now a fait accompli.
As I mentioned I went to the city to hear my daughter Hannah play in the school’s orchestra concert as they performed among other works’ Stravinksi’s “Rite of Spring.” Led by New York Philharmonic Conductor Alan Gilbert, the concert taking place in stunning Alice Tully Hall in Lincoln Center was a visual and auditory delight beyond measure.
To hear such musicianship from nearly 140 exceptionally talented performers got me thinking about the tiers of talent that exist in other endeavors, namely sports. The musicians’ presence in that milieu was a testimony to their immense talent, unfathomable parental support and years of incredible practice and self-discipline.
Yet even given that, there were those who stood out as even bigger stars including the violin soloist who began playing at age five and then made her debut in the Korean Symphony Orchestra only three years later. Now a junior at Juilliard with a résumé that includes performances all over the world, the winning of concerto competitions and the mark of one of those rare shining stars of classical music, it was clear from her playing on her priceless Strativarius Violin that she was destined to reach the ethereal stratosphere of fame in the not too distant future.
In the hierarchy of talent there are invariably those whose ability exceeds many others deemed by many to be also immensely gifted and extraordinary. Such is the way of the world.
Prior to going over to Lincoln Center I was sitting in the lobby of the drama wing at Juilliard while waiting for my daughter to finish dressing for the concert. On the wall are a series of 12×24 mounted photos of productions from years past, each one a visual gem which freezes forever in time some unforgettable theatrical moment from productions down through the ages of the school’s illustrious history.
Not only was I in awe of the photographs themselves and the captivating scenes which they so artfully depict, but I was astonished at the legion of the then-college actors and actresses whom I recognized from film and stage; people like Val Kilmer, Laura Linney, Kelly McGillis and Viola Davis, the latter most recently nominated for an Academy Award in “The Help.”
Juilliard has been a pipeline for world-renowned musicians and dancers as well. Its list of successful alumni actors includes Robin Williams, Kevin Kline, Kevin Spacey, Elizabeth McGovern, Kelsey Grammer, Patti LuPone, Jeanne Tripplehorn, William Hurt, Christopher Reeve and countless others. No doubt, at least a portion of my readers recognize some of those iconic names. Christopher Reeve was Superman, Val Kilmer played Jim Morrison in “The Doors,” Patti LuPone was the stage’s first “Evita” etc, etc, etc.
The point is this:
To become a drama student at Juilliard is to be chosen as one of an incredibly select few. The school admits fewer than 20 each year to its drama ensemble and every one is talented beyond measure. Even so, only a small percentage rise to the pinnacle of fame achieved by the aforementioned stars.
So what does this have to do with basketball?
Everything.
The teams that come through the regular season to qualify for the sectionals are talented and successful. But in the paring down process that ensues, both through the rounds preceding the finals and the championship games even more so, differences of ability are evinced that propel one team forward while ending the run of the other.
Ultimately, the team crowned as Sectional Champion stands atop of all of the rest in this locality and gets to move on to try its mettle against the best from other sections in regional rounds.
Regional champions in turn, try to move on to the elite rarified realm of the state’s Final Four in search of the ultimate Holy Grail of hardwood, a state championship. Every one of those four teams vying for that title has come through a gauntlet of prior rigors, but three of the four will go home missing that final plaque.
A decade of witnessing the unspeakable joy and unbearable sorrow enacted in that lofty athletic theatre has spawned countless stories from my swirling consciousness regarding the nobility and rewards of playing one’s best no matter what the outcome. More of the same will follow shortly.
A decade of attendance at Glens Falls has also schooled me as to what talent vies at that airy level. Section Nine has produced only four boys championship teams in the history of the tournament since 1981 : Millbrook (D)won in 1999, S.S. Seward (C) prevailed in 2003 , Newburgh (AA) triumphed in 2009 and Burke (B) completed unfinished business in 2011.
In the annals of girls basketball history it’s also been an infrequent occurrence, though less so than in the boys’ realm. Tuxedo(D) won in 1982, ’83 and ’84 and again in ’85 (C). Eldred (D) won in 1988, Burke won in 1997 (C) John A. Coleman Catholic (D) won back-to-back titles in 2009 and 2010. With its win over Tri-Valley now sets forth on a bid for a third in its new Class C realm.
Burke and Coleman by dint of their private school status and their ability to draw players from a wider geographic region that includes kids who might have played in larger schools affords them a distinct advantage over the publics. In recent years the rising number of private and charter schools in the New York State Public High School Athletic Association Championships has given rise to vociferous objections from the publics who have to go to war with the kids who reside in their districts.
It is not the point of this piece to harp on this issue though for Section Nine, it continues to be one that in this writer’s view, must be addressed by much more than the mere moving of these schools up a class when they continue to dominate public schools of any size. For Tri-Valley to have defended its hard-fought title from a year ago, it would have had to knock off Coleman. As stories of the game have detailed, that was a bit too much for the Lady Bears to manage.
The play of the private schools within the context of the regular season Section Nine schedule is not the issue, but rather the need for re-routing them in the post season that would bar their participation and invariably their winning of the public school sectional tournament.
But back to the issue at hand which is to heartily commend the play of local teams from Monticello, Liberty, Fallsburg, Sullivan West and Tri-Valley, as well as those from Livingston Manor, Roscoe and Family School for their efforts.
As of this writing Livingston Manor is in a position to win both the boys and girls Sectional titles and they are to be commended heartily for their efforts in that regard.
As they are not in my “loop,” so to speak, I won’t be at their games but wish them well nonetheless.
Tri-Valley Coach John Tenbus now at the end of his second consecutive 18-2 season and two trips to the finals lauded his team’s efforts:
“It was a great year. One of the things I’ve been telling the girls is that we define our own success. We don’t need the championship plaque to know that we did great this year. We want to make sure that we keep it going. I’m losing three seniors this year (Erin Smith, Sarah Schneyer and Hope Costa) but I’m bringing back eight other players so we expect to come back, work even harder and hopefully get to the next level and see what next year brings.”
The title of this piece, “Epilogue as Prologue” suggests that what might be seen as the end is in fact a beginning. Even for the seniors who will not take to the high school court next year, this season’s end marks a new beginning as they move on to another rich strata of life experience.
For the kids who are destined to return to the court next season of course there will be another chance to equal or outdo their stellar accomplishments from this season.
But regardless of whether they play or they don’t, the gains from this season’s endeavors have fortified them. Through perseverance, self-discipline, teamwork in their unselfish contribution to a group cause they have earned dividends that will continue to reward them for the rest of their lives.
These are the times they will never forget no matter what the final score noted as the buzzer sounded.
The photos and stories will endure to serve as a reminder to the legions of parents, friends and community members about these noble efforts which will continue to be a great source of pride to all concerned. These have been in no small ways both Glory Days and The Days of Our Lives for the players and their legions of adoring fans.
To all of the kids who made this season special on the hardwood let me say: continue to strive to be the best that you can be and you will not only be successful in all walks of life, but in your heart of hearts you’ll be a champion who can never, ever fall from grace.
Thanks for the great ride.
Survivors’ Manifesto IV
Fourth Annual Coaches Versus Cancer Classic Features An Expanded Docket Of Games To Raise Money For The Catskill Regional Oncology Unit; Livingston Manor And Tri-Valley Girls Prevail As Do Monticello Junior Varsity and Varsity Boys; Sullivan County Generals Record Mens and Womens Victories
Girls Varsity: Livingston Manor 48, Eldred 22
Boys Junior Varsity Monticello 61, Liberty 29
Varsity Boys: Monticello 65, Liberty 42
Girls Varsity Tri-Valley 64, Sullivan West 17
Womens College SCCC 59, Manhattan CC 54
Mens College SCCC 80, Manhattan CC 50
By RICHARD A. ROSS
Photos at: www.sportsinsights.smugmug.com
The Fourth Annual Coaches Versus Cancer Classic Gets Bigger And More Pro-Active Each Year. Scenes from (some) of this year's moments along with the resulting donation from last year's event. (Clockwise) The Sullivan West Lady Bulldogs look pretty in Pink. Coach Pat Donovan joins his young team for the pre-game photo op. Monticello's Rob Riley goes aloft for two of his game-high 18 points as the Monties beat Liberty 65-42. The 13-1 Tri-Valley Lady Bears and Coach John Tenbus revel in the limelight prior to their 64-17 win over Sulivan West to defend the tourney title. The poster for the event helped draw large crowds to the Paul Gerry Fieldhouse for the day-long event. Tri-Valley senior Erin Smith looks daunting in this pre-game warmup drill. Sophomore teammate Katlynn Greffrath is about to unleash two of her 12 points in the game. Sullivan West sophomore Marianne Durkin rises up for a shot. She's just a sophomore and still learning but she, like the rest of her young teammates are going to make some serious noise in years to come. Liberty junior Ryan Henry goes aloft for two of his team-high 17 points. Last year's representatives from the four teams along with their coaches present a big check to the Catskill Regional Oncology Unit. We'll see a similar photo erelong as a new group carries on the noble tradition.
LOCH SHELDRAKE, NY—(The following introduction is taken verbatim from the piece I wrote two years ago and again for last year’s Third Annual Coaches vs. Cancer Classic.)
Reading it over, I decided that I still couldn’t frame this year’s story any better and so, rare as it is for me to repeat myself, let alone twice, I present this to my readers again knowing full well that many never read it, or for those who did, it is time to be afforded a reminder about the salient subject of cancer and the indomitable human spirit that continues to battle it, not to mention the place that sports has assumed in the ongoing universal endeavor to generate the resources needed to find a cure for this disease .
LOCH SHELDRAKE, NY—Nothing brings home the message of our mortality more than the dreaded diagnosis of cancer. Few people’s lives are left untouched by this modern day scourge that afflicts people young and old alike from every walk of life, striking family members and friends seemingly everywhere we turn.
And yet, even in the face of such a grim and daunting adversary, people find the will and the courage to battle back; to fight for their survival against the combined ravages of the illness and the bodily upheaval wrought by the chemotherapy and radiation most often used to combat it.
Those battles waged daily, yield countless uplifting stories of survivors who overcome the odds, as well as the heart-rending instances wherein noble souls eventually succumb.
But it is in those times when people are besieged by afflictions such as cancer, or ravaged by other disasters such as the 2011 Earthquake and Tsunami that beset Japan, that others will come forward to show their generosity to support one another in their time of greatest need.
In its unrelenting assault, cancer is a universal adversary against which the human spirit continues to apply its resolve to find a cure, and pending that, to deploy better tools for combating the disease and improving the survival rates of those beset by it. Such work is not only time-consuming. It is costly.
Since 1993, an alliance between the American Cancer Society and the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) has spawned a nationwide effort to marshal the resources provided by the popular sport as a fundraising tool to battle cancer.
Today, more than 2000 college and high school coaches are involved in the Coaches versus Cancer program which has raised nearly 50 million dollars to eliminate cancer as a life threatening disease.
The Local Effort
In 2010 two separate events were staged in Sullivan County to help raise money for the epic battle against this terrible affliction. In second of those initial CVC endeavors and the first one held at Sullivan County Community College, Liberty and Monticello’s boys teams went at it in the Second Annual Coaches Vs. Cancer Classic. Liberty prevailed 66-59 in that epic clash and a hefty sum of $1,060 dollars was raised by the event.
A month prior, in December 2009, Sullivan West girls basketball coach Patrick Donovan who had previously called Tri-Valley coach Andy Taggart, had made arrangements whereby the two decided that their upcoming game would be a fundraiser for the Catskill Regional Oncology Unit. Thus was born the “Pink Out” game and its mantra of “Battlin’ For A Cause.”
In that January 2011 clash at SCCC, Tri-Valley prevailed by the score of 37-20, but more importantly, the real winner was the fight against Cancer as a hearty sum was raised as the two rival communities forged a combined effort royale.
Donovan and Tri-Valley Coach John Tenbus who replaced the retiring Taggart had contacted then Liberty Athletic Director Jason Semo about adding their game and its community fundraising power to the Coaches Vs. Cancer Classic.
The result was inspiring. The 2011 event raised $3,205.41 for the Catskill Regional Oncology Unit as the throngs in the packed gym at Sullivan County Community College showed their remarkable generosity in these difficult economic times.
Fans were privy to some wonderful basketball and made aware of the promise that this year’s event would expand again.
In the 2011 CVC high school clashes, the Monticello boys held sway over Liberty by the score of 64-43, while the Tri-Valley Lady Bears dominated Sullivan West to the tune of 59-30. As it would turn out this year, the defending Tournament champions would repeat their feats of a year ago despite major changes in their casts.
On the docket this year was a junior varsity game between the Liberty and Monticello boys, won by the storming Monties 61-29, a varsity girls opener between Livingston Manor and Eldred girls in which the Lady Wildcats prevailed 48-22 behind the 18-point outpouring of Samantha Scott, and a pair of college game as the nightcap as the SCCC men’s and women’s teams took on the Borough of Manhattan Community College to add to the already thrilling girls and boys games that preceded it.
The Lady Generals prevailed 59-54 as Isis Alonso scored 17 points and pulled down 17 rebounds, while Luna Jefferson added 15 points and 13 rebounds. In the men’s nightcap, Pine Bush grad Cleanthony Early scored 21 points in the 80-50 Region XV win. Willie Williams added 18 points and 15 rebounds for the 23-2, 16-0 Region XV Generals who are ranked second in the nation.
Crowds were thinner than a year ago but the event still raised over $3,000 for the Catskill Regional Oncology Unit in the name of Cierra Boone, a young woman who lost herbrave battle against cancer last year. Her cousin Dante Agnew is a student at SCCC this year and the leading scorer on this year’s #1-ranked Generals team.
Monticello Uses A 20-2 First Quarter To Outlast Liberty
This year has seen its share of struggles for both Monticello and Liberty who came into this fray with just five and four wins respectively. Even so, both face crucial must-win league games on February 15 that could bring them sectional berths on their respective senior nights. Monticello hosts Goshen, while Liberty hosts O’Neill.
Both teams had played tough games the night prior to this year’s CVC clash and both had to use everything they had to survive for season-saving league victories. Monticello outlasted Port Jervis 47-45, while Liberty withstood a furious Sullivan West comeback bid to hold on for the 46-40 win. With Eddie Byrd’s ejection in that encounter via a pair of technical fouls, his absence would make things more trying for the Indians who dressed only eight players for the fray.
Monticello jumped out to a 20-2 lead in the first quarter getting six points apiece from Rob Riley and Sean Reuss and five from Anthony Gray that included a trey, to go along with a game-opening three from Ros Djonbalaj. A late bucket by Liberty’s D’angelo Burell avoided the shut out.
The Indians awoke with nine points in the second stanza four of which came from Joe Franke to go along with two apiece from Henry, Andrew Hersh and Taylor Vankeuren. The Monties countered with 12 of their own. A trey from Ben Kapito, four more points from Reuss, three from Riley and two from Naquan Holman gave the Panthers a 32-11 lead at the half.
Liberty continued to play hard and nearly matched the Monties’ effort in the third stanza as they scored 11 to Monticello’s 15. Henry led the way with five points in the quarter, Franke had three and Travis Beaupierre added two. Burrell provided one from the stripe.
Riley carried the load with nine after despite a scary moment wherein he went up for a dunk and got taken out by Vankeuren. The flagrant foul sent Riley to the line for extra attempts given the nature of the violation. “I thought my knee went out,” the stalwart senior would later declare. Gray had his second trey of the game.
Monticello now led 47-22 after three. Liberty erupted for 20 points in the final stanza as Henry poured in 11, Franke provided four and Marson Williams added a trey for the now 4-11 Indians. Henry had 17 points to lead the Indians, while Franke donated 11 to the cause.
Riley led the Monties with 18 with Reuss chipping in 16 including an impressive six-for-six from the stripe in the 65-42 win for the now 6-11 Monties.
Monticello Coach Chris Russo who had been shocked by his team’s poor, albeit winning effort against a diminished Port Jervis team the night before, came away from this game in a much better state of mind. “We shot the ball really well today which we haven’t done in awhile which was really good for us. We defended really well.
The game was different without Eddie in there but you’ve got to give those kids credit. They fought really hard. We had a great first quarter and it really set the tone for the rest of the game. Their kids battled. You know Mike (Salvia) does a great job with them and I’m proud that we were able to get a win. That’s two in a row as we get ready for Goshen on Wednesday. That’s a big one for us,” he noted.
Referencing the scary moment when Riley hit the deck, Russo agreed it was frightening. “Rob’s looking for a dunk and they don’t want to get dunked on. The kid just got a little bit much but fortunately Rob is all right and cooler head prevailed when all was said and done with it,” he averred.
“The event was great. It’s been great all day. The venue is awesome. Chris DePew and Kevin DeVantier and all the guys here at Sullivan do a great job and the event just gets bigger and bigger for us. Hopefully we’re raising a lot of money and I’m proud of my guys.
Salvia deflected any excuses for the loss including Byrd’s absence, fatigue etc. “We just came out flat in the first quarter. We just didn’t bring it and that was the difference in the game. They came out and made a lot of shots that we didn’t expect. They had some kids step up and hit some big time shots,” he noted.
“Our season is on the line on Wednesday versus O’Neill. Our kids understand that and if can bring the same effort we brought against Sullivan West and the latter part of this game we’ll be okay.”
Tenbus Sits His Sluggish Bears Early But Tri-Valley Goes On To Steamroll Young Sullivan West
It’s been a tempestuous week for Tri-Valley as the team suffered its first loss of the season in a home division clash to Tuxedo. The 52-46 defeat unveiled some chinks in the Lady Bears’ armor and had Tenbus looking forward to this game with Sullivan West as a place to put the machinery back in gear against the youngsters of Sullivan West.
It’s not a mystery that Coach Pat Donovan’s kids are learning the game on the fly. They have both talent and heart aplenty but they’ve got a lot to learn. Thus the 3-11 record coming in made the Lady Bulldogs a major underdog to the 12-1 Lady Bears.
Imagine the astonishment of both coaches and the throngs in the stands as Sullivan West battled the defending Class C champs nearly even in the first quarter and trailed by just two at 10-8 at the end of eight minutes.
Tenbus was fuming with his team’s clueless play as they seemed mystified by Sullivan West’s two-three zone, something they practice against constantly. Turnovers, poor execution and a spate of missed shots were part of the modus operandi, not to mention a pair of missed free throws from sophomore point guard Sabrena Smith, a less than scintillating reminder of T-V’s ongoing struggles from the stripe.
The only bright spot was junior Mareena DiMilia who scored eight of her team’s ten in the stanza. The other two points came from freshman Katlynn Greffrath. Sullivan West countered with a bucket apiece from juniors Katie Taylor and Erika Stauch to go along with ones provided by sophomores Jordan Parsons and Sydney Sipple.
Tenbus had seen enough and took his entire starting five out. “I told them they’d go back in when they were ready to play. I’d rather throw away a game than let that go on,” he would later say. His second team provided good energy and played tough defense. When Tenbus figured the message had registered he reinserted his starting quintet who came out and played like demons possessed.
The result was a 24-4 Tri-Valley second quarter barrage that limited the Dawg pups to two buckets by Taylor. With steals galore and easy transition buckets resulting from little or no pressure, T-V was in its element. DiMilia led the charge with eight more for her game-high total of 16. Sabrena Smith had seven and canned her one attempt from the line.
Greffrath, Caroline Martin, Erin Smith and Maria TerBush added a bucket apiece to the burgeoning lead as the Lady Bears took a 34-12 lead into the break.
The imbalance continued in the third quarter as Tri-Valley outscored Sullivan West 16-3 as Tenbus got his entire team into the act. Greffrath and Martin had four each and the Lady Bears got lone buckets from Sabrena Smith, Amanda TerBush, Keira McHugh and Nicole Bradley.
A bucket by Taylor and a lone free throw from Jordan Parsons were all the harried Ladies in white could manage.
The fourth quarter was more of the same as the SW learning curve continued. T-V outpaced SW 14-2. Krysten Herbert had the lone score for the now 3-12 Lady Bulldogs. To their credit, they never gave up as they wrestled in tie ups refusing to relent on yielding the rock. They dove for every loose ball and as Donovan would later note, “They play like that for 32 minutes.”
DiMilia led all scorers with 16, while Greffrath had 12 for 13-1 Tri-Valley. The Lady Bears face a tough week with a home and away pair of league games against Eldred and a visit to Fallsburg on February 16 for the Lady Comets senior night.
To preserve its current hold on the number two seed in the upcoming Class C Sectionals, the Lady Bears need to win all three games or else face the prospect of going on the road to start their title defense.
Taylor had eight of Sullivan West’s points in the 64-17 loss.
Tenbus talked about sitting his starters and how his second team came in and “gave us big minutes with a lot of energy which my first five weren’t doing to start. That’s great as far as the second group. I tried to explain to the girls that we havent’ won anything yet so this business of playing lackadaisically has to come to an end.”
Practicing non-stop against the two-three zone that Eldred will deploy, that Sullivan West uses and at times Fallsburg unveils, it was mystifying to see his starters struggle so. My pregame message tonight was to get back to playing basketball the way we play it, not the way anybody else does: run, pressure and look for the good shots. Once we got out of that funk in the beginning we were all right from then on,” he averred.
“We’re not good enough to take plays off for a whole quarter. If we that when sectionals come around that will kill us,” he concluded.
Donovan was proud of his team’s effort. “We played one of the better teams in the state and were within one point of them. They’re really good. Our girls have a lot to learn but they never quit,” he said proudly. Look for the ascension of Donovan’s troops in the years to come. What they’re suffering through now by way of growing pains in their first year of varsity experience will build a powerful foundation for the future.
Two games were all this harried writer/photographer could manage but my associate Nick Piatek shot pictures from the junior varsity game that preceded the varsity double header.
For albums of photos from both the JV and varsity games from this year’s Coaches Versus Cancer Classic, visit www.sportsinsights.smugmug.com
Adversity Summons Valor
Triple Play Barnstorm Through Wrestling And Two Basketball Games Affords A View Of Triumphs And Struggles; Port Jervis Grapplers Make Short Work Of Monticello; Livingston Manor Boys Nearly Pull Off A Major Hardwood Upset Against Careless Monticello And Liberty Fights Its Way Back Towards Making A Pleas For Sectional Consideration With A Needed Hoops Win Over Port Jervis
Wrestling: Port Jervis 60, Monticello 30
Basketball: Monticello 54, Livingston Manor 52; Liberty 61, Port Jervis 37
By RICHARD A. ROSS
Scenes from a triple play barnstorm of wrestling and boys basketball (clockwise) Monticello's Steve Demestrio (132) pins Port Jervis' Keegan Dunn in :53. Monticello's Joe Revell hits a key late shot to help the Monties avoid a loss to Livingston Manor. Revell had 16 points in the game. Liberty's Eddie Byrd scored 27 points against Port Jervis including four treys. Livingston Manor's Kenny Fisk does his part to try and upset the Monties. Fisk had 20 points and led all scorers. Port Jervis wrestler Bret Sauschuk (145) pins Monticello's John Doherty in 1:27. Monticello's Alex Lawrence (160) puts up a noble fight but succumbs to Dan DiCarlo by a pin in 2:40.
MONTICELLO AND LIBERTY, NY—In the intense crucible of high school sports, particularly when teams are really up against it, there are two possible outcomes. Rallied by the challenge of having their backs to the wall and their bodies nearly pinned to the mat, some will reach down for that last bit of what Abraham Lincoln referred to as “Their last full measure of devotion,” and fight to the end with everything they have.
Of course, Lincoln was referring to the ultimate sacrifice rendered by northern and southern soldiers in the cathartic, bloody battle at Gettysburg. There will be no such fatalities in these late season wrestling and basketball clashes though clearly some teams’ hopes will perish though they battle to the end against all odds.
Other teams facing the inordinate weight of loss after loss will simply fade away. The effect of defeats that outnumber triumphs will cause them to lose hope and simply await the final whistle so as to be free of the burden.
Port Jervis' Dylan Booth (106) pins Monticello's Chawn Neal in :22.
Needless to say, teams are comprised of individuals some of whom will never give up no matter what their teammates do. They are warriors in every sense of the word and the mettle they show under the duress of adversity will serve them throughout their lives, though they probably can’t see that far ahead.
It seems that each January I have one of these days where I barnstorm across the county covering as many as three different events in a single day. It helps me to step back and take a more global view of things, as well as provide my legion of fans/readers with a triplex of photo albums and a few words relevant to their beloved teams’ causes.
My main agenda of the day was Monticello wrestling which would not only afford me a first view of the Panthers, but also a chance to revisit to Port Jervis wrestling, something I covered with intense interest when I was sports editor at The River Reporter.
My last encounter with the Red Raiders was during the heyday of wrestlers like Steven Butler, Matt Parlier, Sean Floor, C.J Floor, J.D Zitone and the like. As coach Eric Hartman notes, “Those guys came through middle school and four years of high school together.”
Few schools can boast of the kind of tradition Port Jervis has had in its illustrious mat history. That year the aforementioned Port grapplers dominated the landscape at the Section Nine Championships.
In 2008 the Red Raiders won the Eastern States tourney, had three Section Nine champions and had two state runner-ups and three of its wrestlers finish in the top four at states. Then coach Jared Kahmer was named Coach of the Year.
Referencing his current team’s status, Hartman notes, “We haven’t gotten things quite the way they were then but we’ve got five guys who were wrestling since they were little. Bret Sauschuk (145), Dylan Muller (138), Dan DiCarlo (160) and Dylan Booth (106).
They’ve done a lot of camps, clinics and tournaments up and down the east coast. So we have a kind of veteran leadership this year which the younger kids feed off of. Port’s recent win over Cornwall was monumental. The Red Raiders had lost to Cornwall a couple of weeks prior at the Middletown duals. What made for the win were wins that Hartman might not have penciled in prior to the match including a victory by Henry Schall (220) and Jarod Sauschuck (99).
In the earlier match, Hartmann had elected not to wrestle Schall up, he opted for the forfeit against a wrestler Schall would beat two weeks later.
At the Eastern States Bret Sauschuk took seventh and Port Jervis finished 21st, the highest placement of any Section Nine team there.
Looking ahead to Sectionals, Hartman notes, “We have six guys that can get us some medals. I think Bret Sauschuk has the best chance of winning. Dylan Muller is another kid who can find his way to the finals so can Dylan Muller. Travis Edwards at 152 and Dylan Booth (106) both have tough weight classes but they should be very competitive.
Port beat Monticello earlier this season. It’s good to see with a new coach taking over the last couple of years that their numbers have come up. It’s tough. Even we have holes in our line up. It’s tough to fill weight classes. A lot of kids don’t want to play two sports and wrestling is a tough sport. You have to build the allure and the public relations. I’ll bet in the next couple of years Monticello will get bigger numbers of kids out and we will too.”
Following this night’s easy 60-30 win over the Monties, the Red Raiders travelled to the Newburgh duals where they’ll encounter heavy hitters like Chaminade, Arlington, Newburgh, Kingston, Warwick and Hauppaughe, a great test prior to sectionals that are coming up soon.
Monticello is struggling these days, but its wrestlers are showing enormous grit and perseverance nonetheless.
In bygone years Monticello has had its share of iconic wrestlers under the watch of former Montie Coach Ed Kaufmann. Over the years there was Marcus Hutchins, Anthony Ng, Alexis Bruno and Vinny Brugaletta, each of whom holds a special place in the annals of Montie wrestling history. But in recent years, especially since Kaufmann’s retirement and the assumption of the reins from his former assistant Justin Fenichal, these have been lean times for the Panthers with a few bright lights including senior standout Paul Gomez (126) who is currently 18-3. Gomez won by forfeit in this match against Port. Interested in attending either St. John’s University or Sacred Heart for pharmacological studies and eschewing wrestling scholarship in favor of studies, the stalwart wrestler will get a chance to take to the mat on January 31 against Minisink Valley on senior night.
In this encounter the Monties collected 24 of their 30 points via forfeits. The only winner was Steve Demestrio (132) who pinned Port’s Steven Dunn in :53.
“Our young guys got a taste about what it’s like to wrestle top guys. I was pleased with the way John Doherty(145) wrestled,” said Fenichal. “Alex Lawrence (160) put up a great battle. Monticello is 5-12. They beat Goshen twice and won three at the Voorhesville tourney.
Section 9 Division I-B: Port Jervis 60, Monticello 30
99 pounds: Jarod Sauschuck (PJ) won by forfeit; 106: Dylan Booth (PJ) pin Chawn Neal :22; 113: Gary Lanterman (PJ) won by forfeit; 120: Sajeth Soundararajan, Sajeth (M) won by forfeit; 126: Paul Gomez (M) won by forfeit; 132: Steve Demestrio, Steven (M) pin Keegan Dunn :53; 138: Dylan Muller (PJ) pin Devin Wallgren :40; 145: Bret Sauschuck (PJ) pin John Doherty 1:37; 152: Travis Edwards (PJ) pin Travis Kelly 1:01; 160: Dan DeCarlo (PJ) pin Alex Lawrence 2:40; 170: Adam Kaiser (M) won by forfeit; 182: Randy Wilson (PJ) pin Nick Fiore :28; 195: Travis Currieri (PJ) won by forfeit; 220: Henry Schall (PJ) won by forfeit; 285: Mike D’Abbraccio (M) won by forfeit.
Records: Port Jervis 10-9 (4-2 Section 9); Monticello 5-11 (1-3 Section 9).
Montie Hoopsters Dodge A Bullet Against Class D Manor Wildcats
Monticello's Joe Revell drives the ball up the floor as Livingston Manor's Nick Ziemis guards him.
Traveling through the maze of hallways from the Robert J. Kaiser Middle School wrestling venue to the high school gym took awhile as I took a number of wrong turns and had to rely on various custodians to provide me the right directions. I should have had my GPS with me.
Arriving in the Pit with 5:35 to go in the fourth quarter I was stunned to see Manor ahead by two points having heard that the Panthers had led by as many as 17. What I witnessed from Monticello looked like a re-enactment of its struggles that led to an earlier season collapse against Sullivan West. Feisty LM which has already clinched at least of share of Division VI and with a win over Chapel Field will own that honor, was battling full bore, while the Monties looked out-of-synch.
Defensively they weren’t closing on shooters and offensively they were not executing their sets, settling instead for low percentage shots and forced entry against rotating help. Leading 52-50 Monticello nearly nearly suffered its eighth loss against three wins but dodged the bullet of a late trey attempt by Mike Mills which would have put Manor in the driver’s seat. Joe Ravell scored 16 for the Panthers in the win which advanced their record to 4-7. Rob Riley had 10. Kenny Fisk had 20 points for Livingston Manor (6-4) and Troy Correa scored 15.
Monticello, which lost an OT heartbreaker in the Class A Sectional semifinals last year, has its work cut out for it if it wants to return to the dance. Coming frays against Valley Central, Burke, Port Jervis and Liberty which it will play at SCCC in the Coaches Versus Cancer Classic will determine its fate. Manor has an easier road to travel and will likely find John A. Coleman Catholic as its strongest obstacle to a Section Nine Class D title.
Liberty Downs Port Jervis As It Hopes To Build A Case For Sectional Inclusion
Liberty's Joe Franke scored 18 points in this game including a quartet of treys.
No team has suffered more adversity than the Liberty Indians boys basketball team this season. Following what appeared to be a commanding home league win over Sullivan West, the district uncovered the fact that one of its players was in his fifth year of high school, thereby rendering him ineligible and wiping out Liberty’s four wins to date.
In lieu of being 4-3 (1-1) at the juncture, the Indians were consigned to an 0-7 (0-1 ) mark. Losses to O’Neill and Burke made matters worse, as did a heart-rending one-point defeat to S.S. Seward. The Indians reclaimed a win by downing Chapel Field and on this night they doubled their win total with a commanding 61-37 win over Port Jervis, a team they beat by two points earlier this season.
Details of this game are far from the point as Liberty led 16-9 at the end of the first quarter, 32-17 at the half and 46-27 after three quarters in a game that was never in doubt. Eddie Byrd led all scorers with 27 points that included a quartet of treys. Joe Franke had 18 points and four long-range strikes as well. Ryan Henry added the team’s final trey as part of his seven point contribution for the now 2-10 Indians over the 2-10 Red Raiders.
Despite its garish record, Liberty actually has a chance to still make sectionals through an appeal to a Section Nine committee comprised of A.D.’s from various schools. To that end, they must win key games from here out including league rematches against Sullivan West and O’Neill. Needless to say an upset win over Burke, though highly improbable to say the least, would go a long way towards abetting their cause.
Liberty still has games against Chapel Field, Monticello, Family School and Livingston Manor. A win over Monticello would help since the Panthers are a Class A school as is Port Jervis.
Port Jervis was led by nine points from Davon Adamson. They were 5-for-14 from the line (35%), while the Indians were a lackluster six-for-14 (42%).
Liberty Coach Mike Salvia summed things up this way: “We’re playing a lot better basketball now, despite our last couple of losses considering the turmoil we’ve been through. We had one bump in there. In the one-point loss to Seward we just didn’t get a good shot at the end of the game.
One thing that has been constant throughout this season has been our defense. As long as we defend like that we’ll be fine for the rest of the season. We have some winnable games in the future and we have to beat the teams who are in front of us to make our case, “he noted.
“Every game is a one-game playoff for us,” he averred. “Then we’ll put it in the hands of the committee after doing what we can do on our end and hopefully the committee will rule that we have a case,” he added.
Regardless of what the final decision will be in that regard, it is clear that Liberty is handling its adversity with class, fight and determination, all of which will yield its share of rewards for the players and their coach even if they find themselves on the outside looking in when sectionals roll around.
Ultimately, who wins or loses each year is obviated by the long term gains in character and perseverance built, especially when you’re fighting against what seems like insurmountable odds.
More to come. Of that you can be sure.
For albums of photos from all three events, visit www.sportsinsights.smugmug.com
State Troopers
Eldred’s Alex Campanella Just Misses Out On A State Title; Runners Struggle On Muddy Course That Reduced Times And Made Advances Toughest In The Middle Of The Pack; Warwick’s Grandanali and NFA’s Frontera Take 5th In Class A Races; V.C.’s Cavalluzzo Finishes 8th
NYSPHSAA Cross-Country State Championships
By RICHARD A. ROSS
Two salient moments: Eldred's Alex Campanella comes up 1.5 seconds shy of a state title as Notre Dame-Batavia's Jeffrey Antolos edges him out at the finish line. Campanella's silver medal will provide him with even more motivation as he moves ahead. The speedy junior has one more year to garner the gold. A warm hug is shared by Valley Central junior Holly Cavalluzzo and NFA's Giana Frontera after the finish of the Class A girls race. Frontera was fifth and Cavalluzzo was eighth. The two have been at the top of the Section Nine Class A picture since the OCIAA and Section Nine races where Frontera prevailed in both.
VERONA, NY- “Excelsior,” the motto of New York State which means ever-upward was the title for the piece I wrote about last year’s NYSPHSAA Cross-Country Championships, an uplifting day in every sense of the word from the weather, to the course conditions at Pawling High School and capped off by the NYS record-setting performance of Cornwall’s Aisling Cuffe.
Muddied but undaunted, Tri-Valley senior Jim Bernstein fights his way through the muddy course. He finished 29th far short of his expectations after winning his first-ever Section Nine championship.
There were many triumphs that day for runners from Section Nine and the piece was an honorarium to a meet which is the largest event put on NYSPHSAA during the year. Cadres of parents , friends and family swarm over the course trying to get a glimpse of runners as they travel over hill and dale. Year in and year out, this meet is spectacular and not enough can be said about the hundreds upon hundreds of runners who earned their way to states by dint of their outstanding seasons and sectional finishes.
This year’s race for all of its grandeur and allure was far more trying than the one a year ago. The outstanding course at Vernon-Verona-Sherrill High School in Section III had been ground down into a muddy track by the unreal wet weather and by the pounding it took from the legions of runners who have traversed it. A day before the November 12 outing, Section Nine runners along with their counterparts from the states other ten sections had been working out on the sodden course.
So even for the first runners on Championship Saturday, namely the boys from Class A, the prospect for evincing quick times, making rapid cuts and passes and moving up in the pack were severely hampered by the conditions. As the day progressed, it only got worse so by the time the Class D girls were at it in the early afternoon, it was literally a slog through the bog.
Eldred's Hunter Proscia was a medal winner with his 15th place finish.
As Tri-Valley girls coach Missy Iatauro pointed out to me before the races began as I expressed my concerns about how the Lady Bears would fare under such conditions, she reminded me, “It’s the same for everybody.”
That it was and so by day’s end, despite many finishes by Section Nine kids that they assessed as less than what they had hoped for, the race was a great life learning experience. There are things over which we have little or no control. That not only includes the weather and things like race conditions, it also includes the talent and assets held by competitors you’ve never raced against.
For Eldred junior Alex Campanella, that came home most profoundly in the final few meters of the Class D boys race, an encounter during which he and Notre Dame-Batavia’s Jeffrey Antolos had run shoulder-to-shoulder. Campanella led at the one-mile marker with a split of 5:19. He and Antolos would both average 5:39 over the muddy course and as they entered the track for the final leg of the race, Campanella had a narrow lead which disappeared in the final few meters as Antolos (17:29.4) put on an epic kick to outpace him by 1.5 seconds as the Eldred harrier crossed the line in 17:30.9 exactly 15 seconds faster than his time a year ago on the speedy course at Pawling High School. Last year’s 15th place finish galled Campanella and he vowed to go for the gold this time out. Silver it was instead but a glorious race nonetheless.
Section Nine's Class B girls bolt out to a quick start.
Campanella was disappointed that he couldn’t hold onto the lead, but the stalwart three-season warrior resolved to return next year for one more crack at it. Heading to the Federation Race at Bowdoin Park in Wappingers Falls, he is still determined to make his mark there and move on to nationals.
“The course was really tough. It was a lot easier the first time I came here, “ he noted referencing Eldred’s visit to V-V-S earlier this fall. “It wasn’t the race I wanted. I slipped coming around the turn towards the final straightaway and then he got me,” he said while maintaining that he was not offering any excuses. “Every step was slippery. I’ll come back next year, “ he averred.
Campanella’s finish was the best of the day for Section Nine runners including senior teammate Hunter Proscia who won a medal with his 15th place finish in 18:34.2. Like Campanella, he made massive strides from last year to this sparked by a summer training regimen that would make grown men quiver. Last year he as 42nd at the state meet but running only 1.3 seconds faster than that outing had him a bit dismayed. He shook it off though, knowing that his brightest moments lie ahead in track this spring.
Tri-Valley's girls along with other Section Nine contenders look all shiny and clean as they start off, but not for long as they soon were slaked with mud from the sodden course.
Proscia was in fifth at the one mile point but according to him, “Once we started going into the second mile, I didn’t make my move but kind of sat on it. I wasn’t able to make a move after that and I hovered around 15th the whole race.
The course was really rough. You couldn’t kick anywhere. I wasn’t concentrating on racing but more focused on where my next step was going..where I was going to run.”
Seward’s boys took fourth overall among the 11 competing sections in the Class D boys race.
Kudos to Eldred senior Christine Donnelly who finally made states in her fifth and final try. Donnelly was upbeat and proud of herself though she certainly had hopes of doing better than finishing 47th in 23:44.8. “I’m proud of myself,” she averred.
Eldred's Christine Donnelly made five years of hard work pay off by finally getting to states. It was not the finish she hoped for as she came in 47th but she was proud of her efforts nonetheless. Indoor and spring track await her senior year final exploits.
For Tri-Valley’s Jim Bernstein in this second trip to states, particularly behind his first-ever Section Nine championship, was hopefully going to be a watershed moment. Bernstein was going to have to run this race without teammate Omar Lopez who hurt his ankle in the Section Nine championships though he still qualified with his seventh place finish.
Bernstein had run on the V-V-S course the day before and knew it was muddy, but the race itself proved to be an eye-opener. Bolting out to a good start, the stalwart senior soon found himself not only encased in mud, but also enclosed within a pack of runners that made up the rear of the top third of the Class C entourage.
With very poor traction and no place to make clean cuts to move ahead, Bernstein was frustrated as he realized the impossibility of moving ahead. He finished in 29th in 18:36.4. Slaked with mud he retired to the bench in the finish area and took it all in. “At the beginning I got boxed in a little bit and then I tried to pass on the outside. When I tried to get of the box I didn’t do what I should have done. I conserved a little towards the end of the race. The leader went out really fast. It was hard to keep contact with him,” he noted. “It was a mud hole. I almost fell a couple of times and I was slipping a lot, especially on turns.
Revolutionary War re-enactor Bob Allers of Deansboro, NY readies his 1745 British Brown Betty replica musket for the firing of the start of each race.
Bernstein was stlll able to revel in the honor of being at states for the second year. His progress was notable moving up from 53rd a year ago but the slippage in time was unexpected given his blistering pace in the Section Nine meet. In cross-country, times vary from meet to meet where courses and conditions vary immensely. “On to indoor!” he vowed.
Sullivan West’s Reed Scott was running in his first-ever state meet. Realizing the caliber of the runners in the fray and the hellacious conditions, he hoped to finish in the top 50 but had to settle for 57th in 19:14.6. “It was kind of hard. I slipped a little bit here and there but I didn’t actually fall. In the beginning there was a huge crowd. It’s a lot different from any other race I’ve been in where I’m used to having space to move,” he observed.
Livingston Manor’s Neal Mock also expressed his troubles with the muddy course in his Class D run in which he palceed 52nd in 20:01. “Mud kicked everywhere, mud in your face and mud on your back. All the narrow trails and all the mud, I couldn’t get a kick anywhere. It was really hard to pass people.
Warwick's Patrizio Grandinali shows the trappings of running through the mud as he holds his fifth place spot in the Class A race. Warwick finished fifth as a team.
The girls races would produce more of the same for most Section Nine runners, but not for NFA sophomore Gianna Frontera who finished fifth in 19:42.7. She and West Gennesee’s Laura Leff who finished 2nd, broke up the potential 1-5 sweep by the nation’s top-ranked team Fayetteville-Manlius which took first, third, fourth, fifth and seventh for another outstanding 15 point sweeping finish. It was F-M’s sixth straight state title and its third year with a perfect 15!
Frontera who finished ahead of Valley Central’s Holly Cavalluzzo in both the OCIAA and Section Nien championships, did so again as Cavalluzzo came in eighth in 20:01.6 to earn a medal. The speedy junior improved over her 11th place finish in Class AA a year ago though her time, like most runners was off the pace of the speedy Section In course in 2010. The two shared a big hug after the race. Their times of pushing each other are far from over.
Monticello eighth grader Camryn Johnson crosses the finish line with a valuable first-time experience at states.
In the Class C race, the gritty Tri-Valley girls were hoping for strong finish to their outstanding season but like so many others, they succumbed to the same narrative: mud and poor traction. They finished ninth overall out of the 11 sections. Eighth grader Autumn Bender was 48th in 22:43.9, an improvement over last year’s 52nd place finish but slower in time than a year ago’s 21:16.1. Sophomore Sabrena Smith was the next closest in 57th place with a time of 23:46.4. She was followed by senior Olivia Rehm in 74th in 23:46. The other three T-V finishers were sophomore Brooke Gillete in 86th (24:15.5) , junior Danielle Graham in 93rd in 24:02 and freshman Alex Brooks in 121st in 27:00. Brooks has missed much of this fall’s running and is just starting to come back.
All of the T-V runners except Rehm will be back at in the fall and though Smith starts basketball two days after this race, the rest of the crew moves on to indoor track where they plan on defending their Section Nine title.
Exhausted from the 5:00 am wake up, the three hour drive and the running I did from start to view points to finish chutes, I headed home glad that I had come. Though I know many of the kids weren’t satisfied with the results of their efforts, this writer was greatly impressed by their resiliency and determination nonetheless.
Last minute counsel from Sullivan West coach George Shakelton is imparted to first-time state contender Reed Scott. For Scott and other underclassmen with the chance to return, this year's race was a great learning curve.
That will do it for me for fall coverage this year. A couple of high school awards presentations this week and then it’s on to winter endeavors after a short hiatus to catch my breath.
For an album of photos visit www.sportsinsights.smugmug.com
State Of Grace
Section IX Cross-Country Championship Provides A Rich Tapestry Of New And Defending Champions, Winning Streaks And A Bevy Of State Qualifiers; T-V Bears Go Over The Mountain With A Girls’ Team Title and First-Ever Championship By Jim Bernstein; Eldred’s Alex Campanella Repeats, While Christine Donnelly Wins At Last
Section Nine Cross-Country Championships
By RICHARD A. ROSS
Scenes of splendor from the Section IX cross-country championships (Clockwise) Tri-Valley's Jim Bernstein is on his way to winning his first-ever Section Nine C title; Eldred's Alex Campanella repeats as Section Nine 'D" Champ. Eldred's Christine Donnelly wins on her fifth try as she finally garners the 'D' crown. Class C gilrs winners include the victorious Lady Bears (left to right) Autumn Bender, Oliva Rehm, Brooke Gillette, Sabrena Smith, Danielle Graham, Devon Jones and Alex Brooks. Front row: Emily Walligursky, Mallory Peterson, Mary-Kate Bida, Deidre Dwyer and Lillian Gavio. Class C girls leaders Emily Walligursky (forefront) T-V's Autumn Bender followed by Millbrook's Mallory Peterson and Spackenkills Deirdre Dwyer.
BEAR MOUNTAIN, NY—In all of life’s races, there will always be victors and also-rans. No matter what your walk of life or chosen endeavor, some people will get to revel in the riches of their success, while others are left to wonder why their best just wasn’t quite good enough in a particular instance.
While talent is an invaluable prerequisite towards reaching the top, so too is assiduous hard work and preparation. But even with all of that to draw on, one needs a little bit of good fortune in order to prevail over daunting adversity which can loom around
the very next turn in the road.
The start of the girls Class A race eventually won by NFA's Giianna Frontera.
No one understands these challenges better than cross-country runners. Stalwart, gritty and determined to withstand the rigors of hills, mud, trails that twist and turn and the aches and pains that are commensurate with taxing their bodies to the max, harriers build strength for life as they reckon with pushing themselves to exhaustion in search of their best.
And in the context of such quests, they are apt to experience days of unbridled joy as well as those of devastating disappointment. It goes with the territory.
Like the trails they run on, runners know firsthand about emotional ups and downs.
Try as I might to convey the drama of the Section Nine Championships held at a blustery Bear Mountain on November 4, I am bound to fall far short in my humble narration to depict the courage and the heart in the eight races I bore witness to.
All I know is that throughout the day, I had tears in my eyes, a product of not just the wind but the emotions exacted by seeing
hard-fought triumphs as well as heart-rending disappointments
The Sullivan County emphasis in this story is a given since I know so many of these runners, their ongoing sagas, trials and tribulations and what they bring to races like this one wherein their entire season is on the line.
Eldred senior Hunter Proscia finished second in the Class D run and returns to states with teammate Alex Campanella, along with Christine Donnelly and Sarah Malzahn who are making their debut at the state meet.
This is where their hopes of being one of the chosen, that elite group of kids who will move on to states, will be either affirmed or denied.
This race is what many of them have thought about 24/7 as they’ve worked beyond even the limits of their own imaginings to achieve that sought-after state of grace.
“If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again,” is more than a saying for senior runners like Tri-Valley’s Jim Bernstein (16:12.68) and Eldred’s Christine Donnelly (20:09.84), who finally broke through after years of trying to garner their elusive Section Nine Class C and D titles respectively
Both seniors relegated their summers to rigorous running and both vowed to win. Bernstein returns to states with teammate Omar Lopez (16:51.52) who finished 7th despite undergoing a fall. More on this duo shortly as I break this story down to detail the day’s component races.
For Donnelly, who missed last year’s state meet by a single place, this victory was sweet beyond reckoning. From the report of the starting gun, she grabbed a lead she would never relinquish, even when pressed by Coleman’s Kate Shults.
O'Neill's Zech Snel and Sullivan West's Reed Scott will be making their debut at states. They finished fourth and eighth respectively.
Sullivan West junior Reed Scott made it too this year in his third endeavor. Scott (18:56) took eighth to punch his ticket.
Many other runners would finally break through to either win or qualify for the state meet.
Then there were the first-timers such as Monticello eighth grade twin sisters Camryn and Sidney Johnson who qualified for states in their debut year. Camryn (19:14.14) took third in the Class B encounter, while Sidney (19:53.59) took eighth.
Livingston Manor’s Neil Mock (18:02.1) made it to states in his senior year cross-country debut as he finished ninth in Class D. O’Neill’s Zech Snell (16:35.90), a harrier who converted from playing soccer a year ago, also made his first attempt pay off with a fourth place finish in Class C.
Eldred’s expected one-two punch of Alex Campanella (16:15.72) and Hunter Proscia (16:54.97) sends the pair back to states.
Campanella who expressed his dismay over his fourth place finish in the OCIAA league championships a week prior, attacked this race with a vendetta to exact a time 31 seconds faster that his 16:46.72 Section Nine time a year ago. Proscia moved up from fifth to second from his 2010 time of 17:43.68.
Campanella will be satisfied with nothing short of a state championship in this his junior year. For Proscia, a senior, you can bet he’ll hold nothing back as he strives to achieve the same goal, or failing that, a finish near the top.
Sullivan West runners and their coach George Shakelton warm up prior to the 'C' race. With two veterans from last year's states in medalist Dani Myers and teammate Kelsey Dutton, the Lady Bulldogs figured to place three in the top ten with eighth grader Courtney Meyerer. They did that but came up four points shy of Tri-Valley and astoundingly had no one qualify for the state meet. Such disappointments are hard to reckon with but the team will be back minus senior Rachel Deppa next year to try again.
While running is an individual endeavor, it is also a team enterprise and there were team sagas aplenty by day’s end. In the Class C girls race, Sullivan West and Tri-Valley each hoped to unseat champion Rhinebeck and stave off a challenge from tough Onteora.
That said, few could have predicted the bizarre result wherein Sullivan West got three runners in the top ten and came up just four points shy of Tri-Valley for the team crown.
Worse yet for the Lady Westies, though Dani Myers (19:45.22), Courtney Meyerer (19:53.79) and Kelsey Dutton (19:55.63) took seventh through ninth, none of the trio made it to states, a crushing blow particularly for junior Myers who won a medal for her 20th place at the state meet a year prior and Dutton who also ran in the big race.
Meyerer’s eighth place finish as an eighth grader is impressive to say the least and you can expect the Lady Bulldogs to rebound next year with a vengeance as they lose only one senior in Rachel Deppa.
Tri-Valley’s win, its first since 2007 and its 19th overall, was the latest in a remarkable fall. After garnering their 12th
straight division title, the Lady Bears traveled to the Mt. Sac race in California and finished first among 30 schools in their division in the race Coach Joe Iatauro describes as “the largest high school invitational in the world.”
Group hug: Tri-Valley Lady Bears share a warm hug as they enjoy the school's first girls team win since 2007.
The girls’ win at Mt. Sac was the first one since 1993. The boys finished fourth there with the first three teams ahead of them from Nevada, Alabama and California.
Eighth grader Autumn Bender finished second at Mt. Sac running the seventh best time of a T-V girl in the school’s nine appearances there.
In this race the Lady Bears were paced by Bender (19:19.25) who took third overall behind Onteora’s Emily Walligursky (18:26.87) and Millbrook’s Mallory Peterson (19:16.50).
This was Walligursky’s first cross-country championship, an honor to go along with her track titles. Peterson was sandwiching her state-qualifying race between a pair of Section Nine soccer playoff games.
While Sullivan West had three runners near the top, Tri-Valley had the better of things from its number four and five runners. Here’show the Lady Bears did it with their number two through five runners:
Olivia Rehm (19:59.88) was tenth; newcomer sophomores: Brooke Gillette (20:36.40) was 14th and Sabrena Smith (20:44.03) was 15th. Junior Danielle Graham (21:02) was 16.th Tri-Valley outpointed Sullivan West 52-56. T-V will send its complete team including Devon Jones and Alex Brooks to states.
S.S. Seward’s boys won their fourth consecutive Class D title; Warwick’s boys won their 14th consecutive crown; Monroe-Woodbury’s girls won their fourth consecutive title, their 19th overall; Warwick boys won for the tenth straight year; New Paltz’s boys won their third consecutive Class B title.
Twin Peaks: Monticello eighth grade twins Camryn (left) and Sidney Johnson made their first year in cross-country special as they qualified for states with their third and sixth place finishes. Monticello came in second to Cornwall overall in the girls Class B team standings.
This year’s realignment by the state compacted the former five classes to four. That pushed teams like Monticello, Wallkill, Goshen, Port Jervis and Cornwall down to Class B from Class A.
Race by race details: noted below are not the names of all members of winning teams, just the top five as well as individual runners from other teams heading to states.
Class A Boys:
Warwick’s Patrizio Grandinall (15:55.09) became the fifth Warwick runner to win since the turn of the century. Warwick outpointed second place Washingtonville 22-72 as it took the top four places in the race with Grant Parrell, Aaron Peterson and Ray Farinella. State qualifiers also include: Eric Albino (Minisink Valley), Jeremy White (Washingtonville), Alex Shodai (Middletown), Connor Quinn (Washingtonville), Austin Mermell (Pine Bush). (For times and places of all runners, visit www.milesplit.com.
Class B Boys:
Class B boys approach the path near Hessian Lake.
New Paltz holds off impressive Port Jervis 55-56. Top five runners Alfrez Mazzuca of NP(16:11.5), David Busby (NP); Micke Vecchio (Cornwall); Declan Dwyer-McNulty (Red Hook) and Benn Rodd (Cornwall); State qualifiers also include: Kobie Lane (Port Jervis) and Chris Maroni (Goshen).
Class C Boys:
Rhinebeck beats Tri-Valley 36-72. 3. O’Neill 89; 4. Pine Plains 127; 5. Onteora 128; 6. Liberty 179; 7. Sullivan West 188. Jim Bernstein’s 16:12.68 significantly outpaced his last year’s sixth place finish in 17:08.68.
Bernstein was followed byJohnny Marvin (RB); Zach Karas (RB);Zech Snell (ON); Dante Penepent (RB). Other state qualifiers include: Devin DeJoode (Pine Plains), Omar Lopez (Tri-Valley) and Reed Scott (Sullivan West).
Class D Boys:
S.S. Seward beat Eldred 32-48. Webutuck was third with 66. 4. Livingston Manor/Roscoe 8. Alex Campanella and Hunter Proscia were one-two followed by Nelson Fernandez (Seward), Jesse Capellar (Web) and Kevin O’Neill (Seward): Other state qualifiers include Marco DiBella (John Coleman) and Neal Mock (Livingston Manor).
Valley Central's Holly Cavalluzzo holds a slight lead over a surging Gianna Frontera of NFA. The latter won the race as she did a week prior in the OCIAA league championships.
Class A Girls:
With a mighty kick in the final segment of the race, NFA’s Gianna Frontera (17:34.69) passed Valley Central’s Holly Cavalluzzo to back up her win at the OCIAA league race a week ago. Monroe-Woodbury beat Warwick 56-63. Other top five finishers included Lauren Hehir (Wash); Kathleen Fitzgerald (War) and Amber Goodspeed (Mid).
Class B Girls:
Cornwall defeated Monticello 28-85. 3. Red Hook 86; 4. New Paltz 100; 5. Goshen 110. Ashley Wallace (18:51.96) of Cornwall reigned supreme. 2. Naomi Bouchard (NP); 3. Camryn Johnson (Mont); 4. Keila Sheetz (C); 5. Michelle Lujan (C). Other
state qualifiers include: Cami Ferguson (New Paltz), Sydney Johnson (Monitcello) and Jamie Lisack (Goshen).
Class C Girls:
Tri-Valley defeats Sullivan West 52-56; 3. James I. O’Neill 87; 4. Rhinebeck 89; 5. Millbrook 110; 6. Onteora 111. Emily Walligursky (18:26.87) gets her first x-c title win; 2. Mallory Peterson (MB); 3. Autumn Bender (T-V); 4; Mary-Kate Bida (MB); 5. Deidre Dwyer (Spack). Other state qualifiers include Lilian Gavio (RB).
Class D Girls:
John A. Coleman Catholic defeats Eldred 30-45; 3. S.S. Seward 48. Eldred’s Christine Donnelly wins her first title in her fifth try (20:09.84); 2. Kate Shults (JACC); 3. Kayla Kohl (Web); 4. Heather St. Germain (Chapel Field); 5. Julia Allen (Seward). Sarah Malzahn of Eldred also qualified for states.
All in all, 16 Sullivan County runners will be heading to states this year.
What People Had To Say:
For Jim Bernstein, having the kind of support he enjoys from parents Lenny and Sandy is an integral part of his success. I've hardly been to any of his athletic engagements be they in cross-country, basketball, golf or track wiithout seeing one or both of them on hand to support his endeavors.
Jimmy Bernstein: “It feels so great. Last week’s race was really a confidence booster for me,” said the smiling Bernstein referencing his fifth place finish in the OCIAA in 16:11.56. “I love this course. I’ve run it two times every year.” I put in a lot of work this summer and it’s finally paid off. I’m so proud of it.
Joe Iatauro (about Bernstein): “I attribute his success to summer running. Not too many kids would get up at 6:30 in the morning and go out and do a run or sometimes two a day. He’s a very special individual who dedicates himself and the work is showing off at this point.”
Reed Scott (SW): I kind of died on the hill over there but Omar Lopez gave me a great race and it’s because of him I wouldn’t have gotten in. I’m still a junior and I’ve got next year to look forward to.”
Omar Lopez (T-V): Last week I wasn’t feeling too well. Today I was third running uphill and then I fell and hurt my ankle that’s when I started dropping places. It will be great to get back to the state meet.”
Alex Campanella (Eld): “Last week I ran like an idiot and didn’t run the race I should have. I felt miserable. I wanted to go for time today but I’m satisfied..I wanted to win and go for states.”
Hunter Proscia (Eld) “I think I ran a little better last week and I went out too slow in this race,” said Proscia who like the rest of
the Eldred team was sporting a throwback jersey Coach Frank Schorling found I a closet from the Yellow Jacket halcyon days of the latter part of the 20th century.
“We thought it might be fun to wear these,” said Campanella.
The magic clearly worked for this duo as well as Christine Donnelly and Sarah Malzahn.’
With its merged energy, Livingston Manor and Roscoe were able to field a cross-country team this year and proudly send Neil Mock to states.
Neil Mock (LM): “What got me here was that second downhill and all the work that went into it before that with seven days a week practice of two or three hours each with tons of pacing and tons of hills.”
Camryn Johnson (Monticello); It was very exciting. It was hard but it was fun though. It was a new experience. Last week’s race here helped us prepare for what we were going to do today.”
Sidney Johnson (Monticello): It was really good. The hill was the toughest part but it was a lot of fun.”
Tri-Valley girls on what it feels like to win as a team.
Autumn Bender “I’ll use a quote: We work together, we win together.”
Devon Jones. “I wouldn’t want to be here with any other group of girls.”
Sabrena Smith: “This is the best first season of cross-country and it’s a wonderful team.”
Danielle Graham. “I thought we get here but to see how much hard work we put in together is amazing.”
Brooke Gillete: “As a rookie it feels great to be here.
Olivia Rehm: “It’s been four years and we’ve worked so hard. It’s finally paid off,” she said through her tears.
Alex Brooks. “We did this all for our senior Olivia and for Mrs. Iatauro.”
Sullivan West Coach George Shakelton. “I can’t believe we could come in second and have no girls going to states. I’ve never seen that before. Coming in second is a consolation prize I guess. What a disappointment. I knew Rosa Martinez and
Corinne VanWagner had to pass two girls to get us to a tiebreaker at least,” he said. Shakelton was consoling his
heartbroken team while the T-V girls were posing for pictures.
Christine Donnelly (Eldred): “I’m definitely very excited. Last year I just missed states by one so this year I just wanted to come out and try my best.
Sarah Malzahn (Eldred): “The hill was hard going up. I like uphills but steep downhills are tough, especially when it’s narrow and it turns.”
Coach Frank Schorling (Eldred) “The kids ran well today but the times were a bit slower than last week’s. Coleman ran really well. We can’t do anything about that. Christine decided about halfway through the year last year that she wanted to be really good and ever since then she’s worked really hard. She ran really hard this past summer and we just told her, nobody should beat you in this race and don’t let anybody take it from you. She’s beaten all of these girls especially lately. She ran that 19:21 last week and I
told her, make them run what your time is. “
Summarizing Donnelly’s newfound success, Schorling pointed to his head and said, “There’s a difference up here.”
Schorling said his girls were disappointed that the team didn’t win.
Since I missed this year’s OCIAA league championships for the first time in ten years due to a pair of football playoff games that netted me upwards of 800 photos, I wanted to give kudos to Sullivan County runners who really showed up big time in the race that features all schools large and small:
Boys: Alex Campanella (E) 4thin 16:07; Jim Bernstein T-V 5th 16:11.56; Hunter Proscia Eldred 6th 16:17.59; Zech Snel ON 13 16:31.09; Omar Lopez T-V 16:33.90;
Girls: Autumn Bender TV 8th 18:53.52; Camryn Johnson Monticello 14th 19:05.31; Christine Donnelly Eldred 20th
in 19:21.81.
For an album of photos from the Section Nine Championships, visit www.sportsinsights.ny.com
And remember for complete race results visit, www.milesplit.com
Free Pumpkin Painting Event in Livingston Manor Saturday (10/8)
The leaves are changing, the air is getting crisp, fall is here! Get into the fall spirit this weekend at the FREE Pumpkin Painting event in Livingston Manor! Bring the kids down to paint one or paint one yourself. The event is from 1pm to 4pm at Madison’s Main Street Stand, 46 Main Street, Livingston Manor.
There will be pumpkin carving demonstrations and hot chocolate will be provided! Pumpkins are donated by Marty (Lazy Beagle Chef), paint supplies donated by Madison’s Main Street Stand.
What: Free Pumpkin Painting
When: Saturday, October 8th, 1pm-4pm
Where: Madison’s Main Street Stand, 46 Main Street, Livingston Manor
The Young And The Relentless
Tri-Valley Welcomes Modified And Varsity Area Harriers To Crisp Fall Meandering Run; Joe Klein and Johnson Twin Sisters Are Monticello Individual Winners; Liberty Boys, Montie Girls Tops In Team Honors
Boys Team Scores: Liberty 20, Monticello 41; Liberty 18, LM 45; Liberty 15, Tri-Valley 50; Monticello 15, T-V 50; Livingston Manor 15, TV 50; LM 28, Mont 29
Girls Teams Scores; Monticello 15, Liberty 50; Monticello 15, Tri-Valley 50
By RICHARD A. ROSS
rross@sportsinsightsny.com
Hardy harriers of the day (Clockwise) Monticello's Joe Klein edges out Liberty's Kane Sauchuk in the boys varsity race while the Johnson sisters, Camryn and Sidney hold sway in the girls race with an identical finish. Tri-Valley's Robin Dymond wins the girls modified tilt. Sullivan West's Jackson Haberli gives his all as he takes second in the boys race. Liberty's Nick Skindzier wins the boys modified clash.
GRAHAMSVILLE, NY—Given the immense demands of trying to keep up with varsity sports across the county I am forced to eschew the wonderful efforts put forth by the younger set of athletes who comprise modified and junior varsity teams.
I know I’m missing out on plenty as by and large it is generally not until kids reach the varsity level that they enter my purview.
Cross-country is one of those sports that can catapult younger athletes to the forefront as they can break into the varsity ranks as early as seventh or eighth grade.
In my most recent blog about the meet held in Liberty won by Monticello eighth grade twins Camryn and Sidney Johnson, I noted how quickly young runners can burst upon the scene. The dynamic duo in royal blue would continue their fall barnstorming tour with a win in this day’s girls varsity race hosted by Tri-Valley and once again their story would continue to be a compelling one.
But this day would afford me a look at even younger contenders as the Bears were re-opening their scenic course to both modified and varsity runners on a gorgeous October 4 afternoon.
The start of the boys modified race
Watching the modified kids from Tri-Valley, Liberty, Sullivan West, Monticello and Fallsburg, it gave me great pleasure to stand and photograph the cadre of young harriers as they traversed over hill and dale and finished up on Tri-Valley’s legendary track.
Fallsburg’s entry into the modified circuit adds a fine pool of talent to the mix. Seeing Livingston Manor boys runners out in force in the subsequent varsity race was uplifting as well.
The modified race featured a near-photo finish as Liberty’s Nick Skindzier (9:40.6) edged out Sullivan West’s Jackson Haberli (9:58) in the boys race with Tri-Valley’s Robin Dymond (9:48) finishing in between the two boys to capture the girls individual title over the 1.5 mile course.
The list of finishers in the modified races appears in the accompanying photo album which can be visited by clicking on HOT SHOTS at the top of this page or by visiting www.sportsinsights.smugmug.com
The field for the varsity race was not as deep as anticipated as Eldred and Sullivan West did not send their teams to the ramble. Tri-Valley’s varsity was MIA as well as they were slated for a big meet at Delhi the following day.
The Livingston Manor contingent.
That left Monticello, Liberty and Livingston Manor to duke it out. Setting off at a fast clip as he did recently in his third place finish against Oneonta, Monticello’s Joe Klein (18:57) outpaced Liberty’s Kane Sauchuk (19:33) over the 3.1 mile course.
Klein was delighted to emerge as the day’s victor but as Coach Pete Wysochanski had mentioned to me as the up-and-coming harrier had zoomed by in the lead midway through the race, a quick pace has been Klein’s modus operandi this fall.
Finishing 18th out of 65 runners at Washingtonville with one shoe missing in action was a preview of coming attractions. Seeing him start quickly at Oneonta, Wysochanski wondered if he could maintain the pace. He did then and he did it again on this day.
“It was pretty rocky and muddy. I rolled my ankle a little bit. At Oneonta I thought I went out a little too fast but I tried to keep up the pace,” said the three-season runner who will move on to indoor and outdoor track as the year moves on apace.
Monticello's Joe Klein looking to establish a new world order in local finishes.
In winter his running is done in tandem with downhill skiing. “I’ll probably run a little more this winter,” he said. In track Klein runs the 4×800, the mile, the two-mile and the steeplechase. The cross-country season is fabulous preparation for the rigors of those distance races in the spring. Asked about being part of Monticello’s Division championship last year, the Monties’ second straight title, Klein said, “It was a lot of fun.”
Liberty secured team honors in the boys race as Sauchuk’s second place finish was abetted by Dominic Ahrend (20:00) in third, Ray Malloy (21:05) in fifth and Vinny Webb (21:07 in sixth. Livingston Manor’s Neil Mock (21:00) took fourth. Rounding out the top ten were more Liberty runners with Matt Rourke (21:10) and Eric Cuellar (21:27) taking seventh and eighth respectively. Monticello’s Chris Marodi (21:42) and Bryden Fraser (21:49) were ninth and tenth. The rest of the boys results were as follows:
1- Joe Klein M 18:57
2- Kane Sauchuk L 19:33
3- Dominic Ahrend L 20:00
4- Neil Mock LM 21:00
5- Ray Malloy L 21:05
Dominic Ahrend
6- Vinney Webb L 21:07
7- Matt Rourke L 21:10
8- Erik Cuellear L 21:27
9- Chris Maroldi Mont 21:42
10 Bryden Fraser Mont 21:49
11 Jackson Krebs L 21:56
12 Dylan Taggart LM 22:01
13 Nat Tompkins TV 22:08
14 Ian Kuzrock TV 22:11
15 Evan Taggart LM 22:33
16 Robert Johnamen LM 22:48
17 Dylan Blackwell L 22:49
18 Dharamet Khangura LM 22:55
19 Ian Kolaito M 23:03
20 Mike D’Auria LM 23:52
Neil Mock
21 Terrance Lockhart 23:54
22 Tim Jones Mont 24:28
23 Josh Winters TV 24:38
24 Tom Dapp Lib 25:55
25 Max Kaplan LM 26:07
26 Dylan D’Aurio LM 26:22
27 Brandon Law Lib 26:36
28 Pete Koval Lib 27:14
29 Jon Nilsen Lib 27:42
30 Dimetrius Miranda Lm 30:54
31 Angelo Piscatelli LM 30:57
Twin Peaks
The girls race featured runners from Monticello, Liberty and a sole contender from Tri-Valley. Leading from the get-go, Montie twin eighth graders Camryn and Sidney Johnson were not pressed given the absence of runners from Sullivan West and Eldred. The twins finished in an identical 21:44 ahead of teammates Brittany Rupp (22:36), Erica Concors (23:36.2) and Ashley McEnearney (25:44) to enable the Lady Monties to easily outpoint Liberty for the team honors. Tri-Valley’s Jessica Kinney (29:42) represented T-V with her ninth place finish coming in behind Liberty’s Sierra Thomas (26:46) and Erin Kinney ( 29:42).
Sullivan West is hosting a home meet next week to which area varsity teams are invited including this day’s array. It remains to be seen however which runners will take to the course as coaches often use their discretion with the surfeit of important meets looming. Division V Tri-Valley, Livingston Manor and Eldred will have their Division championship meet at Eldred on October 18. On the same day Liberty will host Sullivan West, O’Neill and Burke for the Division IV title clash.
The girls results for this meet were as follows:
Brittany Rupp (left) and Erica Concors
1- Camryn Johnson M 21:44
2- Sydney Johnson M 21:44
3- Brittany Rupp M 23:36
4- Erica Concors M 23:36.2
5- Bryanna Sewell M 25:18
6- Ashley McEneaney M 25:44
7- Sierra Thomas L 26:46
8- Erin Kinney L 29:42
9- Jess Kinney TV 29:42
10 Amanda Dejesus L 33:40
11 Myra McConnell L 33:47
Again, for an album of photos and instructions on how to order reprints and other keepsakes, visit www.sportsinsights.smugmug.com
Sullivan County CROP Hunger Walk on October 16th in Livingston Manor
Church World Service and the eight Presbyterian Churches of Sullivan County are sponsoring the Sullivan County CROP Hunger Walk on October 16, 2011, to raise funds for hunger programs in our area and around the world. Church World Service distributes a quarter of the funds raised among local food pantries and meal sites. The remaining funds support Church World Service and other designated international agencies and their relief and development programs. Last year over 50 walkers raised more than $3000. Of that amount, over $780 was distributed in Sullivan County.
Local businesses can assist the CROP Hunger Walk by creating a team to walk with us or by making a donation. Some businesses also encourage their employees to walk and offer to match the dollars that they raise. It is a way to show the community that businesses care.
Donations to Church World Service for the CROP Hunger Walk are tax-deductible. Church World Service is an ecumenical ministry of 36 Christian denominations and communions working with partners to eradicate hunger and poverty and to promote peace and justice around the world.
The Walk engages a broad cross-section of the community in service to the neediest of the world. It is an interfaith, community-oriented event that (1) raises funds to help hungry people (2) raises awareness of hunger as an issue, (3) engages and trains volunteers for community service, and (4) brings together persons of many ages and backgrounds in a common endeavor.
Who: Interested Persons
What: Sullivan County CROP Walk
Communities Responding to Overcome Poverty
When: Sunday, October 16, 2011
Registration at 2pm, walk at 3:00 pm
Where: Livingston Manor Central School
School Parking Lot
Why: To raise awareness and funds to take a
How: www.cropwalk.org
walk on the web at www.cropwalkonline.org
For more information contact Pat Segar at 932-8525
