FROM THE PRESS BOX: A BAKER'S DOZEN - THE TOP STORYLINES OF 2018 (2018-12-31)

While 2018 may not be remembered kindly by a majority of Americans, Valley sports will look back fondly on 2018.

The year marked the end of three spectacular careers, those of Athens grads Breana Gambrell and Emily Lunger, and Waverly grad Elle Nittinger. It also marked the emergence of Sayre freshman Roz Haney, who made an immediate and historic impact on the soccer field.

It will also be remembered for a historic wrestling season, and a number of Section IV and District 4 titles, as well as strong performances at States by Sayre baseball, Athens girls track,  the Waverly girls golf teams, and the Athens boys soccer team.

As I've said in the past, lists are like ... well, everyone has one.

Here is one person's list - from 13 to 1 - of the "Baker's Dozen - Top Stories of 2018."

13. Waverly boys swim team repeats as IAC Duals and league meet champions: Waverly went through the 2017-18 regular season with an unblemished record in league duals, then - led by triple-winner Mike Atanasoff - repeated as league meet champions.

The Wolverines are on their way to making it a three-peat with an 8-0 record as 2018 comes to an end.

With the large majority of the team under classmen, Waverly appears ready to write a few more chapters in this storyline.

12. Waverly girls soccer reach third consecutive Section IV title game: The Lady Wolverines put together another great season, and repeated as IAC Large School champions.

Waverly also advanced to its third consecutive Section IV, Class B title game, where it lost to Chenango Forks for the third straight time. For the second time in three years, Forks went on to win a state title.

Waverly graduates five starters, so it will be interesting to see if it can write another chapter in this storyline.

11. Tioga football wins seventh Section IV title in eight years: Under coach Nick Aiello, Tioga has established itself as a Class D state powerhouse. The Tigers have won seven of the last eight Section IV, Class D titles.

Tioga is also 7-0 in the Regional championship game, but are 1-6 in the state semifinals. The one win came en route to a state title in 2015.

The Tigers graduate 10 seniors, including six two-way starters. Tioga will have some holes to fill if it's to add another chapter to this amazing storyline.
 
10. Athens girls soccer get over the hump for first District 4 title since 2000: Rich Pitts took over the Athens girls program prior to the 2016 season with the intent of getting the perennial NTL power over the hump in the District 4 playoffs.  Athens was 31-5-2 in Pitts' first two seasons, but both ended in the opening round of the playoffs.

Pitts beefed up the non-league slate in 2018, back-loading his schedule, and it paid dividends. After a 13-3 regular season, the Lady Wildcats knocked off Shikellamy and Mifflinburg to win its first District 4 title since 2000.

Athens graduates four starters, but two of them combined for 65 goals. There is talent returning, but is there enough to write another chapter in this storyline?

9. Tioga boys basketball make first trip to Section IV hoop finals in 30 years: When the season started, few picked Tioga to advance to the Section IV, Class C finals. One person who had an inkling it was possible was second-year Tiger coach Brian Card.

After letting a double-digit lead slip away in the fourth quarter to state-ranked Moravia on Jan. 2, Tioga found itself at 6-3. Nine consecutive wins later, including a victory over the state's top-ranked Class D Newfield, the Tigers found themselves squaring off with Newfield again in a divisional playoff.

Tioga bounced back from its loss to Newfield in the Small School playoff with wins over Notre Dame, and top-seeded Walton in the playoffs, but could not overcome a slow start in the Class C title game in a 58-48 loss to Unadilla Valley. Not all storylines have happy endings.

Could this be one of those one-and-done storylines, or can Card craft a sequel?

8. Waverly volleyball wins first-ever Section IV title: Kesha Sinsabaugh took over a Waverly volleyball program mired in mediocrity in 2011, and immediately turned them into a playoff program.

The Lady Wolverines lost the Section IV, Class C title match to Susquehanna Valley in 2012. Six years later, Sinsabaugh's charges avenged that loss and won the program's first-ever Section IV title.

Waverly graduates a few key seniors. It will be interesting to see if this is a storyline out of the blue, or if the Lady Wolverines can add to this year's storyline in 2019.

7. Athens boys soccer notches first win in State soccer playoffs: The Wildcats got over the hump in 2016 and won the program's first-ever District 4 title. After a loss in the 2017 title game, they returned this year to win the Class AAA title again.

The Wildcats took the next step this year, winning their first-ever state playoff game to advance to the state quarterfinals.

With nearly everyone returning in 2019, another chapter in this storyline will certainly be written.

6. Waverly girls golf team runs win streak to 98 - finishes third in first-ever State team tournament: Some things remain the same, as in Waverly recorded its third straight unbeaten season, qualified five golfers for the individual state tournament, and won another Section IV team championship.

And then there was something new. By virtue of winning the Section IV team title, the Lady Wolverines competed in the first-ever State team tournament, and finished third.

With just one senior in the top five, this is a storyline that will have at least one more chapter.

5. Tioga wrestling enjoys banner season: It may not be the best season in Tioga wrestling program history, but it was pretty close.

The Tigers dropped a two-point decision to eventual state champ Mount Sinai in the semifinals of the inaugural New York State Division 2 Duals Championships, then repeated as champs at the Section IV Championships, crowing two champs, and sending six to the New York State Championships, thanks to four wild-card invitations. They finished fourth in the teams standings in Albany.

Despite two-time state place-winner John Worthing's absence due to illness, the Tigers still had three underclass men reach the podium - Brady Worthing (second place), Austin Lamb (fifth place), and Stephen Taylor (sixth place).

Considering they have four former state place-winners returning, and four more grapplers on the verge of qualifying for States, this is a storyline that will be re-visited for the next few years.

4. Valley wrestling fans treated to historic season: Valley schools sent 12 wrestlers (Tioga six, Athens four, S-VE two) to States this season, topping the previous high of nine, last accomplished in 2009 when Waverly (four), Athens (three), and Tioga (two) combined to hit that mark.

Five of the 11 who competed earned medals, and Tioga's John Worthing would have surely made it 6 of 12.

Granted, it's the first time since 2013 (Athens' Brian Courtney in 2016 and '17, Waverly's A.J. Burkhart in 2015, and Waverly's Ryan Wolcott in 2014) , the Valley has gone without a state champ, but 12 wrestlers at States is impressive.

4B. Burkhart, Bradley close brilliant careers with PIAA medals: Three-time state qualifier senior Nate Bradley reached the podium as a seventh-place finisher in his final trip to Hershey, while classmate A.J. Burkhart, who won two state medals while at Waverly, including a gold medal as a freshman, earned a fifth-place medal in his second trip to the Giant Center.

Bradley (113-42) and classmate Chris Horton (110-44), who made his first trip to Hershey, both joined the 100-win club this season, and are two of seven Wildcats to accomplish that feat in the last three seasons - joining Brian Courtney (153-6), Kaidon Winters (120-43), Gage Cannavino (118-44), Brock Horton (114-38), and Roger Horton (109-43). Burkhart, who was 186-28 in his career, went 76-15 in his two seasons at Athens.

3. Athens girls track & field wins eight District 4 Track & Field gold medals - finish second at States: A year after winning five gold medals and the program's first-ever District 4 championship, the Lady Wildcats won eight gold medals and repeated as champs.

It was a record-setting two-day performance for the Athens girls as senior Breana Gambrell set a new District 4 record in the long jump, Emily Lunger set school record in the high jump, and the 400-meter relay team set a new school record.

Breana Gambrell won three gold medals to bring her career total to 15 medals, including 14 gold and one bronze, while Lunger won three gold medals to bring her total to 10, including six gold medals, two silver, and two bronze.

Juniors Rachel Hutchison and Ariana Gambrell each won three medals, including a pair of gold medals, to bring their career totals to eight apiece.

At States, the Lady Wildcats collected six medals and finished in second place in the team standings, improving one spot from their third-place finish in 2017.

With Breana Gambrell and Lunger graduating, this year was likely the last chapter in the storyline.

2. Sayre baseball wins first-ever PIAA playoff games, advance to state semifinals: Sayre finished the season in uncharted territory, but a mid-season swoon created some temporary doubters.

The Redskins started the season with seven straight wins, but lost five of the next nine games, before righting the ship with five straight wins to advance to the state semifinals.

Senior Nate Sweet pitched a complete game in Sayre's win over Montgomery in the District 4 semifinals, and senior Jordan Rockwell followed with a complete game in the title game for the second year in a row to give the Redskins their fifth District 4 championship in 11 years.

After the Redskins opened the PIAA Class A playoffs with a 5-2 win over Greenwood for the program's first-ever state playoff win, junior Jon Cron delivered a two-run single in the bottom of the seventh inning to give Sayre a 4-3 win over Faith Christian Academy in the quarterfinals.

The historic season came to a screeching halt with an 11-0 loss to Southern Fulton in the state semifinals, but it's still a season that will long be remembered by Valley sports fans.

With Sweet, Rockwell, Sam Wheeler, and Connor Hanafin graduating, a sequel to this story will be difficult to pen for the 2019 Redskins.

1. Athens senior Breana Gambrell caps brilliant track & field career: A year after winning two gold medals and one silver medal, Gambrell one-upped herself this spring with two gold medals and two silver medals.

A once-in-a-lifetime talent, Gambrell graduates with 11 PIAA medals, including six gold and four silver. She became just the third athlete to win four gold medals in the same event, setting a state record in the long jump in the process this spring.

She also graduates with District 4 records in the long jump, and 100-meter dash, and the school records in the long jump, triple jump, and the 100. She was also part of the school-record 400-meter relay team, which set that record in a silver-medal performance at States.

With Gambrell taking her talents to Penn State in the fall, it's likely she'll be adding more chapters to her legacy, but another storyline like this again in the Valley is highly doubtful.