THE SPORTS REPORTS: CORNING'S McLAUGHLIN NAMED ALL-REGION GIRLS 'ATHLETE OF THE WINTER;' TWO TIOGA COUNTY ATHLETES MAKE BAKER'S DOZEN LIST OF TOP ATHLETES (2025-04-20)

The Sports Reports
Corning junior Cella McLaughlin had a record-breaking indoor track & field season that ultimately resulted in state gold. She is The Sports Reports' 2024-25 All-Region "Athlete of the Winter."

The Hawks standout was the state champion in the 100-meter hurdles and also finished fourth in the state in the long jump.

She won the 100 hurdles title with a personal-best time of 8.03 seconds. She also had a PR of 18-feet, 10 1/4-inches in the long jump.

McLaughlin broke the school records in both events this winter.

The 2024-25 All-Region Girls' Baker's Dozen "Athletes of the Winter:"
Cella McLaughlin, senior, Corning track & field: See above.

Anaiah Kolesar, junior Northeast Bradford wrestling: Kolesar won her first Central Region title, and her third PIAA medal, finishing the season with a 36-6 record that included 21 pins and nine technical falls. Three of her losses came to Montgomery senior Emily Murphy, who finished third in the State.

Kolesar finished second at the District 4 Championships, and won her first Central Region Championship, beating Murphy for the title. She finished fourth at the PAA Championships, after finishing seventh as a freshman, and fourth last season.

Tayah Beach, junior, SVEC wrestling: Beach won a Section IV title, and secured the program's first-ever state medal. She posted a 30-10 record on the season, including a 15-match win streak heading into the state tournament. She had 22 pins and six technical falls on the season.

Beach won gold medals at the Southern Tier Memorial, IAC Championships and the Section IV Championships. She posted a 4-2 record at States, losing to the eventual second- and third-place finishers.

Megan Wolf, senior, Horseheads basketball: Wolf averaged 18 points, 7 boards, 4 steals and 3 assists a game. She had 40 3-pointers to lead Horseheads to its second straight Section IV title.

She became the seventh player in school history to score 1,000 career points

Mariah Matias, sophomore, Elmira basketball: Matias averaged 17.1 points, 13 rebounds, and 2.7 steals per game, despite being focal point every game and being double- and triple-teamed all season.

Char Starns, sophomore, Corning basketball: Starns  averaged 18 points, 15 rebounds and 3 blocked shots per game.

Defensively, she drew the opposition's best post scorer on a nightly basis.

Emmi Makie, sophomore, Candor basketball: Makie was a double-double machine this season, recording 14 double-doubles — nearly averaging a double-double — and knocked down a school-record 54 3-pointers.

Makie averaged 19 points, 9.7 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 2.9 steals per game. She also shot 75 percent from the free-throw line.

Kailyn Sterling, senior, Troy basketball:  A dominant scoring in the paint that NTL teams never figured out how to stop as she reached the 1,000-point plateau. She could defend across several positions with her quickness, and was the Player of the Year for the Trojans.

Haley Litzelman, junior, North Penn-Liberty basketball: Litzelman averaged a double-double of 16.2 points and 11.9 rebounds per game, reaching double digits in both points and boards 13 times and recording a triple-double twice.

She hit 42 3-pointers on the year, shot 65% from the free throw line and averaged 4 assists, 4.1 steals and 1.8 blocked shots per outing.

Madison Smith, junior, Elmira bowling: Smith posted the best averaged in the STAC this year at 208. She had the fifth-best series among the bowlers at the team competition at States with a six-game set of 1,209. She also had the best series at the STAC Championships.

Kendall Kitchen, senior, Canton basketball: Kitchen was a 1,000-point scorer while averaging 14.6 points per game this season to lead the Warriors. She also had averages of 4.6 rebounds, 3.2 assists, and 3.1 steals as she helped Canton to their best team season since 2002, which ended with a state berth.

Leah Beebe, junior, Northeast Bradford basketball: Beebe averaged 14.5 points for the Panthers, while also running the point guard spot for much of the time. A tenacious defender, she helped NEB to their sixth straight NTL Small School title, and the District IV, Class 2A finals.

Chloe Brandenburg, senior, Wellsboro basketball: Brandenburg scored 14 points per game with 47 three-pointers, while shooting 72 percent from the line. She also averaged 2.2 assists, 4.9 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game, while being the opposing defense’s main focus all season.

Addy Wheeler, senior, Athens basketball: A consummate team player, Wheeler averaged 13.8 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 4 assists, and knocked down 20 3-pointers on the season.

A stout defender, Wheeler was consistently put on the opposition's best player. She averaged 6.2 steals and 3 deflections per game.

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