Warwick Valley High School Boys Basketball Hall of Fame induction

WARWICK — On Saturday, Feb. 10, three men whose efforts, commitment and past accomplishments on the hardwood helped shape the history of Warwick Wildcat basketball were inducted into the Boys Basketball Hall of Fame.
The Boys’ Basketball Hall of Fame Committee selected these individuals for the Class of 2018: Coach Tom Folino, Class of 1976; Chris Andre, Class of 1978; and Gavin Hannah, Class of 2010.
Chris AndreChris Andre, a 1978 graduate of Warwick Valley High School, was a three-year varsity player (1975-78). He was a starter in both his junior and senior year. He played under head coach Mark Kurtz and Les Grigsby.
Andre was the captain of the 1977-78 team that just fell short of qualifying for the Section IX tournament.
He led the 1977-78 team in rebounds, blocked shots and free throw shooting percentage. He also averaged more than 12 points a game.
When he graduated from Warwick, he held the following boys’ basketball records:
Most blocked shots in a game with 10;
Most blocked shots career 52; and
Free-throw shooting percentage of 85 percent.
He had many accomplishments during the 1977-78 season:
Selected to the Vernon High School Holiday All-Tournament team;
Selected to participate in the OCIAA Exceptional senior basketball game; and
Selected to the Orange County League (OCL) All County All Star Team.
During his four-year high school basketball career, he never missed a practice or game. He played junior college basketball at Orange County Community College where he was a two-year starter. He graduated from Marist College with a degree in communications.
His most memorable moment was during his junior year in a game versus Tuxedo High School as he scored the last 10 points of the game to help the Wildcats to an important division win and keep their Section IX playoff hopes alive.
Other memories: When he was the first player to dunk in the All-County Exceptional senior game that was held at OCCC and coaching as an assistant for the boys’ basketball program at Warwick the past five years.
Gavin HannahGavin Hannah, a 2010 graduate of Warwick Valley High School was a three-year varsity player and two-year starter. He played under head coach Tom Folino.
Hannah helped lead the Wildcats to the Section IX tournament in both his junior and senior year. The 2009-10 team finished runner up in the OCIAA Division II.
He finished his career as the 15th all-time leading scorer in Wildcat history with 557 points. He averaged more than 13 points and seven rebounds per game in both his junior and senior year as he led the team in both categories.
He was selected as MVP during his junior year and Offensive Player of the Year his senior year.
Hannah was selected as the MVP of the Jim Taravella tournament during his junior year. He also was selected to the 2009-10 BCANY Section IX Class AA All-Star Team.
He graduated from SUNY Cortland in 2014 with a degree in fitness development and a minor in sports management and is presently working with the Red Bulls professional soccer team in the marketing department as a field marketing coordinator.
His most memorable high school basketball moment was during his junior year in a game versus Kingston High School. He was fighting flu like symptoms and barely was able to attend school that day, but he had the best game of his career as he scored 24 points along with 14 rebounds to help lead the Wildcats to a stunning upset over the Section IX powerhouse.
He also lists the fond memories of being teammates with his best friends throughout his childhood and school as a most memorable moment.
“We had a special bond that continues today as we stay in contact with each other regularly even though we live in different states,” Hannah said. “ We still are the best of friends.”
Tom FolinoTom Folino, a 1976 graduate of Warwick Valley High School was a two-year varsity player (1974-76) and coached in the boys basketball program for 25 years. He played under head coach Vito Magdelinskas and Mark Kurtz. He was a member of the 1974-75 team that finished with a 16-6 record. The 1974-75 team played in the Section IX Class B Championship game versus Nanuet.
Folino coached boys’ basketball at Warwick for 25 years, 18 as the varsity coach. He finished his career with 241 total wins at Warwick (including junior varsity). He finishes as the second all-time winning varsity coach in Warwick boys basketball history with 151 wins.
His teams won two Class AA Division II championships (2010-11 and 2011-12) and qualified for the Section IX basketball tournament 12 times.
The 1987-88 team finished with a 15-6 record.
The 1987-88 and the 1990-91 teams advanced to the semi-finals of the Class B tournament.
His team won the Section IX Class AA Team Sportsmanship Award in 2014-15 and 2016-17.
Folino was selected by the Orange County Basketball Officials as the winner of the prestigious Jim Taravella Memorial Coaches Award for the 2016-17 season.
While coaching at Warwick he was the founder and director of the Warwick AAU Spring Basketball program. He was the director of the Summer Boys Basketball Camp for the past 10 years.
He was the director of the Coaches vs. Cancer Warwick Basketball Classic Tournament for 17 years and helped raised significant money for cancer research through this tournament.
He also is the founder of the Boys Basketball Hall of Fame.
His most memorable moments from his playing and coaching career are many:
Coaching his son Thomas on the varsity teams for two years;
The buzzer-beater game winning three-point shot made by Anthony Mann Jr. in the Hall of Fame Game vs. Monroe-Woodbury;
Beating Minisink Valley in front of a packed Warwick high school gym for the division championship in the 2010-11 season; and
Victor Sholar’s three-point bank shot at the buzzer that tied up the 1991 Section IX quarter-final game versus Cornwall, which the Wildcats ended up winning in overtime.
But most importantly, the coach said, was the opportunity to have taught and coached so many outstanding young men during his tenure at Warwick Valley High School.
Essential informationIf you would like to nominate a former Warwick Wildcat basketball player for consideration for induction into the Hall of Fame contact Greg Sirico, the Warwick Valley High School athletic director and a member of the Warwick Boys Basketball Hall of Fame Committee at 845-222-1402 or e-mail at gsirico@wvcsd.org.