Basketball notes that almost made the paper

Florida - This past basketball season deserves a few brief final comments. The notes, both physical and mental, belong to this reporter, but they should also bring back some long dormant remembrances in others. The theme, so to speak, is probably “Touching Bases,” or making connections to people and places revolving around basketball, and a few other sports, all connected in some way to the S. S. Seward Institute in Florida, N.Y. First some historical connections: George F. Baker, for whom Tuxedo High School is named, was once a student at S. S. Seward. His father, George E. Baker, was William H. Seward’s personal secretary when Seward was Secretary of State under Lincoln and Andrew Johnson. While holding that office, he also was the president of Seward Institute, a position he assumed when his father Samuel S. Seward died in 1849, one year after the school opened. George F. Baker was also the chief contributor to the Seward Monument ($10,000) when it was erected on Florida’s Main Street in 1930. Here’s a more modern connection: One fan at the recent Section 9 game between Florida and Tuxedo at OCCC was Tuxedo School Superintendent Joseph Zanetti. Zanetti also got his start in the academic world teaching at Seward. And Seward’s Lady Sparta coach at that sectional game was Joe DiMattina, who is an alumnus of George F. Baker High School in Tuxedo. Next comes a really complicated connection: While chatting with long-time teacher and coach at Seward, Joe Mazzarulli, recently retired, felt a tap on the shoulder.Turned and looked up - and up and up - at the towering form of Monticello varsity coach Dick O’Neill, former Chester Hambletonian star athlete and one-time softball teammate. With him was John Melville, Commander of Troop F of the State Police, John S. Burke alumnus and scrimmage teammate for Glenn Kleveno’s one-time Middletown Rec League basketball team. Then another hand reached out. Ray Jarosz, recently retired teacher and coach at Minisink Valley and a former outstanding baseball player for the Florida Comets of the Hudson Valley Rookie League. A fourth member of that varied group was Seward’s own Gary Card, a fine three-sport athlete in the mid 1960’s. He would have loved that three-point arc. Needless to say, that visit by the “Fab Four” warmed up a cold, winter evening. Other interesting folks at those games: Louis Sosler, Seward Class of 1969, was visiting from his home near Cleveland, Ohio. Lou was an outstanding student-athlete at Seward and a graduate of the Military Academy at West Point. After a six-year tour of duty, he retired as a captain and later pursued a career in the nuclear energy field where he still serves as a consultant. Brother Jim volunteers as scorekeeper at Spartan and Lady Spartan away games. And Jim’s son Kevin is a volunteer assistant coach/statistician for the Spartans. Speaking of families, the Seward Spartan “family” receives a lot of support from the members of the Board of Education, School Superintendent Douglas Burnside and high school Principal Michael Rheaume. They are frequent attendees at home and away games. Mr. and Mrs Burnside have a special interest as daughters Kylie, a senior, and Brooke, a sophomore, were both members of the Lady Spartan varsity basketball and soccer teams. Connections outside the confines of the Seward gym: The notebook and camera also traveled to the Kaplan Center at Mount St. Mary, home court of the Blue Knights in Newburgh. The highlight was watching Seward grad Mike Hoyt set the Mount St. Mary career scoring record. Hoyt, a junior led the Seward Spartans to the State Class D Championship in 2003. He’s one of the top players in the Skyling Conference and one of the best student-athletes in all of Division III. Also made several trips without the notebook to watch coach Judy Mottola’s Minisink girls’ basketball team. Mottola who once taught and coached at Seward, led the Lady Spartans to the NYS Class D soccer championship in 1987, and took her basketball teams to several state Final Fours. Husband John still teaches at Golden Hill and also led the Spartans to a state championship in baseball in 1999. Judy Mottola’s present-day team beat Newburgh and Kingston for the Section 9 Class AA Title and downed Horseheads in the state opening-round game at New Paltz. Sorry, must mention this: Found an elderly Horsehead’s fan who actually knew Bill Jayne. Jayne joined the Florida Fire Department while still a student at Seward and later drove Florida’s 1929 Sanford fire truck. He later moved to Horseheads, was active in their fire department and later tracked down that old fire truck in a junk yard. He had it partially restored, drove it in parades, and before he died willed it back to the Florida Fire District where it has been fully restored and serves as a proud link to the past. So, in a way, this past basketball season served as a connecting link from generation to generation, not only at Seward, but wherever the game is played. And those links don’t lead only to the days gone by. The most heart-warming item that was clipped and filed away was the photo that a Times Herald-Record photographer took of four-year old Grant Gravelle cheering on the Lady Spartans against Tuxedo. Grant, the son of Gia and Spartan coach Rob Gravelle, wearing his Spartan T-shirt, was caught in a truly triumphant pose. Let his voice be the voice of the future for the Spartans and the Lady Spartans.