New York State Senators Tom O’Mara and Assemblyman Phil Palmesano made several stops over the past couple days to visit with and pay tribute to the accomplishments of local high school athletes.
On Monday both legislators joined the Corning-Painted Post school community to pay tribute to a roster of the school’s 2022-2023 New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA) champions in several sports.
O’Mara and Palmesano visited the CPP High School to join athletes, family members, school administrators and staff, coaches, teachers, and students for a ceremony in the school cafeteria to present official Legislative Resolutions honoring the state titles.
O’Mara and Palmesano recognized the following state champions at the ceremony:
- Jack Gregorski, 2022 state champion in the 3200-Meter Run at the NYSPHSAA Outdoor Track Championship last June at Cicero North High School;
- The Varsity Boys 3200-Meter Relay Team that won the 2022 NYSPHSAA Outdoor Track Championship last June at Cicero North Syracuse High School;
- Angelina McKane, who captured both the 50-yard Freestyle and 100-yard Butterfly titles at the 2022 NYSPHSAA Girls Swimming and Diving Championship meet last November at the Webster Aquatic Center;
- The Varsity Boys Cross Country team that won the 2022 NYSPHSAA Boys Class A Cross Country Championship last November at Vernon-Verona-Sherill High School; and
- Gyasi Ruffin, who was the 600-meter champion at the 2023 NYSPHSAA Division I Indoor Track and Field Championship in March at the Ocean Breeze Track and Field Facility on Staten Island.
“We could not be more proud of our student-athletes and coaches success this school year,” said Corning-Painted Post Director of Athletics Rebecca Gentile. “They all put in hard work to be the best that they can be at their respective sports and are so deserving of the recognition they are receiving. Many thanks for this event, where we could all come together as ONE and celebrate the accomplishments of our Corning Hawks!”
Senator O’Mara also stopped by the Tioga Central School District to pay tribute to the school’s state and national champion wrestlers.
At a ceremony held at Tioga Central High School, O’Mara presented an official Legislative Proclamation honoring senior wrestler Emily Sindoni on her national and state championship victories earlier this year.
Shown left to right are Emily Sindoni, Senator O’Mara and Varsity Wrestling Coach Kris Harrington
At the National High School Coaches Association (NHSCA) Girls National Wrestling Tournament in Virginia Beach in March, Sindoni captured her second consecutive, 126-pound National title. In January, Sindoni also won the 132-pound wrestling title at the inaugural New York State Public High School Athletic Association’s (NYSPHSAA) Girls Wrestling Invitational at Onondaga Community College. Sindoni was also the recipient of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame’s prestigious “Tricia Saunders High School Excellence Award” recognizing her outstanding wrestling success, scholastic achievement, and community service.
In addition to Sindoni, O’Mara also recognized the other individual team members who captured state titles this year: Ousmane Duncanson (160-pound Division II title, who ended his season with a perfect overall record of 37-0) and Caden Bellis (138-pound Division II Title, who ended his season with a 33-1 record).
O’Mara also presented an official Legislative Proclamation (J889/K417) to the entire Tioga High School wrestling team on their overall state championships. In January, the Tigers captured their second consecutive NYSPHSAA Division II Dual Meet Wrestling Championship at Onondaga Community College. The team followed up that championship in February by winning their fourth 2023 NYSPHSAA Division II Wrestling Championship at the MVP Arena in Albany, where the Tigers broke the New York State scoring record with 157.5 points.
Proclamations were presented to team members Austin Babcock, Deakon Bailey, Kali Bailey, Caden Bellis, Levi Bellis, Logan Bellis, Trent Browne, Kadin Cole, Jayden Duncanson, Ousmane Duncanson, Max Dydynski, Garrett Godfrey, Bradley Guiles, Drew Macumber, Tate McCauley, Brayden Macwhinnie, Kaya Nelson, Tyler Roe, Conner Streeter, Gianni Silvestri, Brennan Sindoni, Emily Sindoni, John Woodcock, and Jordan Young. All of the proclamations were co-sponsored by State Assemblyman Chris Friend (R,C-Big Flats).
In a joint statement, O’Mara and Friend said, “We welcome and look forward to these opportunities to pay tribute to dedication, excellence, hard work, and success throughout our school communities. Emily Sindoni has been a stellar high school student-athlete and her amazing wresting career was crowned this year with national and state titles. Emily and all of her state champion teammates have brought great pride, excitement, and success to their school, their families and friends, and to the entire Tioga community at large. We are proud to help celebrate their achievements.”
Head Coach Kris Harrington, and coaches Jason Bellis, Jon Martin, and Ryan Macwhinnie were also recognized.
O’Mara made a third stop at Waverly High School, where he presented an official Legislative Proclamation honoring the Boys Varsity 200-yard Freestyle Relay Team for capturing the state championship at the New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA) Swimming and Diving Championship meet in March at Ithaca College. Their winning time of 1:25.58 seconds is the second-fastest in Section 4 history, trailing only the state record holding team from Corning.
The Wolverines’ 200-yard Relay Team Members are: Jerrell Sackett, Ryan Clark, Liam Wright, and Oscar Williams. The team is coached by Josh Mastrantuono.
“This team and their state championship season has brought a great sense of pride, accomplishment, excitement, and success to their school, their families and friends, and to the Waverly community at large,” said O’Mara “It’s an inspiring testament to dedication, hard work, and commitment to excellence.”
“As a team we could not be prouder to represent the town, community, and Waverly School District,” added Varsity Swimming Coach Josh Mastrantuono. “Waverly has a strong history of athletics across many of its sports teams including the swimming program. Many individuals and teams go on to compete at the state level but only a very select few have ever won a State Championship. The accomplishments of these young men stand out in our small community. They are role models for the next generation of student-athletes to come through Waverly.”