A very somber and touching ceremony highlighted the 20th Jeffrey L. Calkins Memorial Wrestling Tournament, Saturday, at Richfield Springs Central School. Jeffrey Calkins, a former wrestler at RSCS, was killed aboard the USS Stark while serving in the U.S. Navy. On May 17, 1987, the Stark was hit by two Iraqi missiles, killing 37 sailors and injuring 21. Two representatives of the U.S. Navy, SK3 Matthew Fellows and SK3 Sarah Dwyer, along with members of American Legion Post 616, of Richfield Springs, participated in a flag folding ceremony to honor the memory of Calkins. With his wife and son at his side, and choking back the tears, Lenny Calkins accepted the flag from Fellows, who saluted the fallen sailor’s father. The American Legion’s colorguard, a prayer by Legion chaplain Richard Mayne and a bugle’s blaring of “Taps” added to the beauty of the ceremony. Floyd Bourne, a former teacher at RSCS and a friend of the Calkins family, recited the following, entitled, “We Remember Jeff.” We lost a student, a classmate, a player, a friend, a brother and a son. Our hearts have mourned this tragic loss; and with each memory that reminds us of good times shared, the deep sadness returns. But we will remember. We will remember football games where the size of his heart and courage made up for the superior physical size of the opponent. We will remember times shared where we learned of the depth of his honesty, loyalty and his sense of humor. Yes, there will be special times remembered and it is these joys that make the sadness something we can endure. We will celebrate the years we were able to share. On this 20th anniversary, we will remember. On the mat, Richfield Springs and Mount Markham tied for 13th place with 15 points. Neither team had a wrestler place in the top four. Dolgeville’s Jake Mastenbrook was the most outstanding wrestler of the lower weights, and Tony Paluck, of South Lewis, was the heavier weights’ most outstanding wrestler. Team scores: 1. Unadilla Valley, 202.5; 2. Sherburne-Earlville, 163.5; 3. Herkimer, 139; 4. South Lewis, 87; 5. Dolgeville, 86; 6. Camden, 85; 7. Mohawk, 80.5; 8. Carthage, 79; 9. Cooperstown, 58.5; 10. Frankfort-Schuyler, 50.5; 11. Little Falls, 45; 12. Pulaski, 18.5; 13. Mount Markham, Richfield Springs, 15. Championship matches: 96 – Matt Prentice (FS) technical fall over Tyi Franklin (SE) 5:58; 103 – Tyler Peet (UV) pinned Jerimiah Casler (LF) :58; 112 – Joe Lanza (Herk) defeated Greg DuVall (UV) 5-0; 119 – Brandon Bello (Herk) defeated Daniel Hicks (SE) 6-4; 125 – Jake Mastenbrook (Dolge) pinned Anthony Enea (Herk) 1:59; 130 – Nick Kubinski (SL) pinned Dennis Murphy (UV) 2:25; 135 – Shayne Wilcox (UV) defeated Brian Stever (Moh) 9-1; 140 – P.J. Senatore (Herk) defeated Frank Sanders (FS) 5-4, OT; 145 – Josh White (Coop) technical fall over Chris O’Leary (Cam) 6:00; 152 – Tony Paluck (SL) pinned Wheeler Brunschmid (SE) 5:45; 160 – T.J. Brownell (UV) pinned Drew Skiff (SL) 2:11; 171 – Mike Ezzo (SE) defeated Cory Gizowski (Moh) 4-3; 189 – Hank Penree (FS) defeated Homer Dobranski (Car) 8-2; 215 – John Posson (SE) pinned Aaron Bogart (Coop) :40; 275 – Chris Pike (SE) pinned Cody Niles (Cam) 2:36.
|