SECTION IV FOOTBALL: SVEC SEEKING CLASS D PLAYOFF RETURN (2025-08-18)
By TIM TAYLOR
Tioga County Sports Report
CANDOR/ SPENCER — The Spencer-Van Etten/ Candor football team has a new coach and he’s focused on getting the Eagles back to the Section IV Class D playoffs.
SVEC doesn’t have big numbers, but do return several players with experience.
“Numbers are looking solid,” Gino Martone said. “We're a little lower than we thought we were going to have, but I think we're at 26 right now. Hopefully, we get a couple more stragglers here in the next couple days.
There's usually a kid or two on vacation at the start of preseason and the Eagles also have a foreign exchange student arriving next week.
The mix of experience plays in SVEC’s favor.
“It's a good mix,” Martone said. “Probably more veterans than youth. It was a small group, senior class, last year so we're bringing back a lot of our juniors, which was a pretty big class.
“Those guys are ready to roll. They know what they're doing. They're leading right now, and it's great to see. They're going to help bring these young guys up too, so definitely a good mix right now."
Leadership will be a key asset.
“I like the leadership right now,” Martone said. “Like I said, those juniors, or seniors now coming up here, they're leading right now, and it's great to see. The effort level has been pretty good.
“The young guys are starting to figure it out. It’s day one, so I can't expect them to know exactly what's coming, but in the next couple of days, let's hope the effort gets picked up a little bit. Right now it's not bad.”
The Eagles qualified for the playoffs last year, falling to Tioga in the semifinals and finished with a 5-5 record. This season, Class D has expanded to 12 teams and all three Tioga County teams will compete in Division VII.
SVEC opens the season Sept. 6 at home, hosting Harpursville/Afton in a 1:30 p.m. contest.
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IN PHOTO 1: New head coach Gino Martone is looking for a playoff return. IN TOP PHOTO: SVEC’s ground game could be one of the most productive in Section IV. ... PHOTOS BY TIM TAYLOR.
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