By ERIC AHLQVIST
Cooperstown Crier
It’s been quite a month for
Brenda Wedderspoon-Gray.
In late September, she was inducted
into the Cooperstown Athletic
Hall of Fame as a member of
the 1977 field hockey team. Last
week, she learned she was selected
as this year’s recipient of the
Clark Sports Center’s Patrick C.
Fetterman Award.
The award is presented by the
gym and the Clark Foundation to
a member of the community who
is dedicated to serving local
youth, especially in the area of
athletics. The recipient embodies
the meaning of outstanding
sportsmanship, inspired leadership
and caring service and is
named after the gym’s longtime
associate director.
Wedderspoon-Gray graduated
from CCS in 1978 and SUNY
Cortland in 1982, and was coaching
junior varsity field hockey at
Cooperstown by the fall of that
year. She has been with the field
hockey program for 27 years, the
last 13 as head coach.
When the new gym opened in
its new location on Susquehanna
Avenue in 1986, Weddersppon-
Gray became an employee and is
currently the director of aquatics
at the gym, although she has
coached a variety of sports over
the years.
``Pat was actually instrumental
in bringing me here,’’ Wedderspoon-
Gray said. ``I think we were
all impacted by his leadership
role. He stressed sportsmanship
above all else and I think we’ve
all tried to follow his example.’’
Wedderspoon-Gray was nominated
for the award by Pat and
Ed Hazzard, who were co-winners
of the award in 2002.
``Brenda continues to work
with kids and young adults on a
daily basis at the Clark Sports
Center, continues to coach at Cooperstown
High School and yet
finds time to volunteer and donate
time to working with children
and local organizations in
the area of athletics,’’ the Hazzards
wrote to the selection committee.
``We have watched Brenda
interact with young people, fellow
coaches, officials and members of
the community and she clearly
fits the criteria for this award.’’
In addition to field hockey,
Wedderspoon-Gray has also
coached volleyball and girls track
at CCS, and youth basketball and
swimming at the gym. She said
former varsity field hockey coach
Pat Mihalko and longtime CCS
track coach Don Howard helped
inspire her to get into coaching.
``I’m honored to win this award,
but I’m not done coaching yet,’’
Wedderspoon-Gray said with a
laugh. ``I’d like to think I have a
lot of years left, and I still really
enjoy it.’’
Wedderspoon-Gray will officially
receive the Fetterman
Award during a luncheon at the
Otesaga Hotel on Monday.
Past Fetterman Award winners
include: 1994: Lavern ``Beanie’’
Ainslie; 1995: Jack Vineyard;
1996: Ted Kantorowski; 1997:
Malcolm Brooks; 1997-98: Jerry
Townsend; 1998-99: Don Howard;
2000: Dick White; 2001: Pat and
Ed Hazzard; 2002: Stephen
``Sharky’’ Nagelschmidt; 2003:
Frank Miosek; 2004: Ted Spencer;
2005: Terry Bliss; 2006: Dave
Adsit. 2007: Bob Snyder; and
2008: Connie Herzig.
Local Sports
Wedderspoon-Gray wins Fetterman award
- Local Sports
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CCS swimmer finds diving challenging
COOPERSTOWN’S AARON IDELSON FINISHED eighth Saturday in the Frontier League Diving Championships at Carthage. Idelson, who already has qualified for sectionals in diving, amassed 285.15 points over 11 dives. The remainder of the meet will be completed this Saturday at Watertown.
After a day of highs and lows, Cooperstown’s Aaron Idelson finished in the middle.
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The sophomore diver scored a 285.15 and finished eighth out of 16 divers at the Frontier League Diving Championships in Carthage on Saturday. -
Brothers compete in the pool
Sometimes things are not always as they seem. Just look at Cooperstown’s varsity swimming brothers Sean and Erik Mebust.
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Volleyball team wins tournament at home
The host Cooperstown volleyball team won a six-team round robin tournament last Saturday. The Redskins tied Stockbridge with identical 7-3 records, but owned the tiebreaker by a single point in head-to-head match-ups, winning 25-22 and losing 23-25.
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Lady Redskins come out strong in second half
Nicole Cring’s double, double helped Cooperstown make a decisive second-half run and beat visiting Mohawk 45-28 in a Center State Conference game on Monday. Cring had 12 points, 12 rebounds and five blocked shots as the
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Redskins scored the first seven points of the second half, stretching a 17-14 lead to 24-14. “There wasn’t much to say.” -
CCS wrestling team competes in championships
Cooperstown teammates Michael Boyle and Jacob Miller had runner-up finishes in the Center State Conference Championships on Saturday at Adirondack.
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Niekro, Ozzie to return for Hall of Fame Classic
The Knucksies and Wizards will go at it again this June in Cooperstown. The Baseball Hall of Fame announced Monday that Hall of Famers Phil Niekro and Ozzie Smith will return as team captains for the fourth annual Hall of Fame Classic at Doubleday Field.
Continued ... - Monday, January 30, 2012
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Redskins hit century mark
If at first you do succeed, try to do even better next time. Dave Bertram led the Cooperstown boys basketball team to its highest points total in his 10 years as head coach Tuesday, when the Redskins thumped visiting Morrisville- Eaton, 106-51, in a Center State Conference Division III game.
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Davine, king of Cooperstown assists
If you need help, try calling Jay Davine. Senior point guard Davine broke Cooperstown’s all-time assists record last Thursday and scored 13 points to lead the Redskins to a 71-43 boys basketball thumping of visiting Westmoreland in a Center State Conference Division III game.
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Fox has big night for Hartwick women
Cooperstown graduate Samantha Fox scored a varsity-high 14 points Friday to lead the Hartwick College women’s basketball team to a 59-49 victory over visiting St. John Fisher in the Empire 8 Conference.
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Patriots hold off Gilbertsville-Mount Upton with score of 59-53
A varsity-high 27 points from Kyle Jaquay led host Cherry Valley- Springfield to a 59-53 Tri-Valley League boys basketball victory Monday over Gilbertsville-Mount Upton.
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CCS wrestles with the ‘Big Dogs’
Cooperstown’s wrestling revival got a reality check on Saturday in the form of visiting Dolgeville. Both teams came in undefeated in the Center State Conference, but only the Blue Devils left that way after a 64-10 win over the Redskins. “Dolgeville is definitely a tough team. Top to bottom, they really don’t have any weak spots on their roster,” Cooperstown coach Micaiah Abts said.
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Coach says he thinks his girls will return to top of their class
Close, but not there yet. That’s the story of Cooperstown’s volleyball team this season, and it played out again on Monday in a 3-1 loss to visiting Waterville in a Center State Conference match.
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Clark Sports Center hosts tournament
The Clark Sports Center recently held its eighth annual Pat Fetterman Memorial Tournament. There were six girls’ teams and six boys’ teams from as far away as West Philadelphia, according to a media release from the sports center.
Continued ... - Thursday, January 19, 2012
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Boy one step closer to seeing football dreams come true
Since Cowboy Stadium in Dallas opened in 2010, football fans have marveled at the massive, modernstadium. Over the holidays, Cooperstown Central School freshman Michael Perrino got to play two games in it himself.
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CCS coach and player earn recognition
Cooperstown’s soccer season has been over for a couple of months now, but the awards haven’t ended. Redskins’ coach Frank Miosek has been named Center State Conference coach of the year, while junior mid-fielder Michael Rowley won co-player of the year.
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Milford girls thump G-MU
Avalon Ward scored 21 points and grabbed 10 rebounds as Milford topped visiting Gilbertsville-Mount Upton, 44-30, in a Tri-Valley League girls basketball game Tuesday. Milford held a 38-14 lead after three quarters before being outscored, 16-6, in the final period.
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Wrestling team focused on improving as end of season nears
Three Cooperstown wrestlers placed at the Central New York WrestlingTournament on Saturday at Vernon-Verona-Sherrill school, giving the Redskins confidence going into their final matches and the end of the season tournaments. Mikey Boyle (113) and Jacob Miller (138) each placed fourth, and Kevin Segit (195) placed sixth in the tournament. Cooperstown finished 14th overall.
Continued ... - Thursday, January 12, 2012
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Redskin ladies are red hot: CCS remains undefeated
Holli Erkson scored a game-high 13 points and Nicole Cring had eight blocks and 12 rebounds as Cooperstown stayed undefeated in the Center State Conference with a 44-29 victory over visiting Sauquoit Valley at Bursey Gymnasium on Tuesday. The Redskins (9-1, 5-0) had early foul trouble and problems on offense in the game. Fortunately for them, they had no problems on defense.
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Free throw caps 46-45 victory over Hamilton
Nicole Cring had a double-double and Holli Erkson hit a walkoff foul shot as host Cooperstown edged Hamilton, 46-45, in a Center State Conference Division III girls basketball game last Thursday. Alexis Bloomfield went 1-for-2 from the foul line with 30.2 seconds left to tie the score at 45 for the Redskins (8-1, 4-0), who stole Hamilton’s last possession with 7.5 seconds to go.
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Hall welcomes Cincinnati kid in third year of eligibility
Former Cincinnati Reds shortstop Barry Larkin was the lone selection by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America ballot. And Larkin’s admission into the National Baseball Hall of Fame came in a landslide. The Cincinnati native who grew up cheering for the man he’d replace at shortstop Dave Concepcion garnered 86 percent of the vote. Seventyfive percent is needed for election.
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