Tioga County Sports ReportTIOGA COUNTY — Attempting to reach the podium at the NYSPHSAA Boys Swimming Championships is no easy task when all the classifications are bunched into a single meet.
Waverly senior Mike Atanasoff accomplished the feat in both events he competed in at states — and did it in record-setting fashion — to be named the 2019-20 All-Tioga County boys “Athlete of the Winter.â€
He garnered the bronze medal in the 50-yard freestyle at states with an IAC-record and school-record time of 21.1 seconds. That effort matches the best finish at states in program history. Atanasoff also earned a sixth-place medal at states in the 100 freestyle in IAC-record and school-record time, 46.61 seconds.
Atanasoff took second in the 50 free and sixth in 100-yard backstroke and swam on the second- and third-place relays at the Section IV Class B championships.
He was the only four-time winner at the IAC championships and was named the meet MVP. He won the 100-yard freestyle in 47.87 seconds, erasing the previous record set in 2000, and won the 200-yard freestyle in a time of 1:46.61, which ranks second all-time in WHS history. He also swam on a pair of victorious relays.
During the regular season, Atanasoff collected his 200th career victory as he led the Wolverines to an unbeaten dual meet season. He was named the MVP of the Wolverine Invitational following record-breaking performances in the 50- and 100-yard freestyle events. His time of 21.29 seconds in the 50 free eclipsed the previous record set in 1985.
Rounding out the All-Tioga County Boys Top 10 Athletes of the Winter list are:
Gianni Silvestri, Tioga, wrestling: In his second season, the 8th-grader became the youngest wrestler in the school history to win a state championship. The 2019-20 All-Tioga County “Wrestler of the Year†went 40-1 with 33 bonus-point wins, including 22 by fall.
On the way to the 99-pound state title, Silvestri won the Wellsville Round Robin Tournament, Sgt. Justin Rodgers Memorial Tournament, STWOA Tournament, Peru Wrestling Invitational Classic, IAC tournament, Section IV Division II Qualifier A and Section IV Division II tournament. He went 2-0 at the Section IV Division II Dual Meet Championship and the NYSPHSAA Division II Dual Meet Championship, avenging his only loss of the season at the latter. That lone setback came in the finals of the Windsor Christmas Tournament.
Silvestri will take a 29-match win streak into the 2020-21 season.
Brady Worthing, Tioga, wrestling: A three-time state semifinalist, the senior finished the season with a 45-1 record and had a 62-match win streak heading into the 138-pound state championship match, which he dropped to Gouverneur sophomore Carter Baer by a 6-4 verdict.
Worthing posted 42 bonus-point wins, 35 being pins. He won the Wellsville Round Robin Tournament, Sgt. Justin Rodgers Memorial Tournament, STWOA Tournament, Peru Wrestling Invitational Classic, IAC tournament, Section IV Division II Qualifier A and Section IV Division II tournament. He went 2-0 at the Section IV Division II Dual Meet Championship and the NYSPHSAA Division II Dual Meet Championship.
He ended his high school career with a career with a 176-34 record. He racked up 151 bonus-point victories, including 110 pins.
Isaac Chandler, Waverly, indoor track & field: A senior, he capped his high school career with a third-place finish in the pole vault at the NYSPHSAA Indoor Track & Field Championships, improving on a fifth-place finish his junior year.
Chandler broke his own school record of 14-feet, 6-inches with a 15-foot vault in December. Despite an injury which, he would tie his mark at the state qualifier, in his second meet back, then set a new record of 15-6 at the state meet.
Scott Woodring, Waverly, senior: Sidelined for about two-third of his junior season due to injury, the 6-8 senior returned to dominate the hardwoods.
Woodring, the 2019-20 All-Tioga County boys basketball “Player of the Year,†averaged a double-double with 25.8 points and 14.9 rebounds per game. He also averaged 2.2 blocks and 1.4 steals per contest. He scored a school-record 552 points this season while shooting 56.9 percent from the field.
Woodring finished his high school career with 1,083 points, 682 rebounds, and a school-record 39 double-doubles in 51 games senior season.
Gage Streeter, Waverly, senior: The first Wolverine diver to qualify for the state championships since 1995, the senior qualified for with a record-setting score of 454.85 points over 11 dives. He was the first Waverly diver to go to states since 1995.
Streeter also won the diving competition at the IAC championships with 411 points.
He also broke a school record which had been set in 1995 with a six-dive total of 273.45 points, breaking the record of 252.5, ands would break his new mark later with a score of 278.85.
Cam Bundy, Owego, wrestling: A junior, he placed third at the state championships, behind 170-pound champion Matt Campo from Mt. Sinai, a four-time state qualifier, and Norwich nemesis Mikey Squires, a four-time state place-winner.
Bundy went 34-7 on the season with five losses to Campo and Squires, who combined for 82 wins. He avenged his other losses to Newark Valley's Cam Carrier and Windsor's Langdon Sibley, defeating Carrier in the Section IV Division II semifinals while beating Sibley in their final three meetings. Bundy won his 100th career match early in the season and posted 21 bonus-point wins.
Josh Post, Newark Valley, wrestling: The senior had an incredible comeback season, placing fifth at 132 pounds at the state championships after missing his entire junior season with a knee injury.
Post recorded his 100th career victory early in the season and went on to register a 37-6 record with 25 bonus-point wins. The No. 8 seed at states, he won 15 straight bouts before falling to the top seed in the quarterfinals.
Brandon Lavo, Owego, swimming: A senior, he placed in the top three in 29 of 31 races during the regular season, winning 17 events and capturing the runner-up spot in 10 more. Lavo posted 11 individual victories and six relay wins. He was undefeated in the 200-yard freestyle (3-0), and also won his only attempts in the 100 butterfly and 100 freestyle.
At the Section IV Class B championships, he placed second in the 500 free and third in the 200 free. Prior to sectionals, Lavo was ranked fifth and eighth, respectively, among competitors from Section IV small schools (under 900 enrollment). The Indians' 200 and 400 free relays were ranked eighth and 10th, respectively. At sectionals, Owego placed fourth in the 400 and sixth in the 200. Lavo anchored both relays.
Evan Hamed, Owego, basketball: The senior was a deadly long-range shooter, hitting 39 percent of his three point attempts. Hamed finished the season with a school-record 69 treys and his 117 career threes is third behind Kobe Bogart (142) and Brandon Hathaway (123).
Hamed averaged 15.8 points, 4.2 rebounds, 3.3 steals and 2.0 assists per game.
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IN PHOTO: Waverly's Mike Atanasoff. ... VALLEY SPORTS REPORT STOCK PHOTO.
