SPORTS HALL of FAME ATHLETE
Tony Ferrara '88

Intense competitor. There's an overused phrase when it comes to outstanding athletes, right? Well there really is no better description that can assess the career of Tony Ferrara.

From the start, as a pew wee wrestler and Little League standout, Tony had that inner fire that only a few youngsters possess. He acknowledged that trait recently, yet he also admitted that (especially) in wrestling, that his was a natural gift and that combination made him someone special.

A defining moment came as a wrestler while still in elementary school. Legendary coach Tom Robertson was in the stands at a local tournament and watched Tony win the championship in decisive fashion. "It was a moment that kind of scared me at the time," Tony recalled. "I mean, there he was, Coach Robertson, calling for ME in the hallway." During that encounter, Tom heaped praise upon the young grappler, but he also cautioned Tony to be more than just a good wrestler. Words he remembered and carried with him.

By 7th grade, there came his first major decision: would he play basketball or wrestle, both of which he did that year. But really, when Coach Robertson was ready and waiting? The choice was clear. And over the next five seasons, Tony set the school record with 169 wins (against 18 losses and one tie). Good choice!

Along the way, Tony was a 3-time Susquenango League and Class C champion. Everyone knows he was a two-time New York State champion at 132 lbs., however the two seasons were vastly different. As a junior, he defeated the the top seed to win Class C, then emerged as a 3-seed to capture his first Section IV title, From there, his three opponents at States (after a first-round bye) sported a combined 104-1 record, so winning it all was truly amazing. As a senior, however, all eyes were on the defending state champ to either repeat or fall. Midway through that 1987-88 season came another defining moment.

It was a home dual versus Walton with a 37-match individual win streak on the line. Tony was asked by Coach Robertson to go up to the 145 lb. weight class for the good of the team, which he did. Then, a sudden and unexpected move by his opponent caught Tony unaware and in a split second, with the slap of the referee's hand upon the mat, the match and the win streak were history.

While others may have looked for excuses, Tony used it as fuel for his fire. From there, he would not be denied. He blitzed through the league, class and sectional meets. He then ran the table to his second straight title, building a 28-match win streak in the process; mission accomplished. Tony Ferrara was, with Randy Payne, the only Sidney wrestler to win two NYS titles!

Tony also played baseball and golf as his spring sport and 3 seasons of varsity football. His work at middle guard/nose tackle - despite his size - helped Sidney immensely. Running teams stopped going "up the gut" as they knew who was waiting. As a senior, he also saw time at running back.

Wrestling at Alfred State was a predictable extension of what he did at Sidney. There, Tony went 65-9, was a 2-time Region III Champion and, in 1990, was a Junior College All-American as he placed 3rd in Nationals at 142 lbs. In 1989, Tony represented our country as he wrestled for the U.S. Junior College National Team that traveled to Germany, Yugoslavia, and Austria. Tony was named Alfred's Male Athlete of the Year (1988-89 and 1989-90) and in 2007 was elected to the Region III Wrestling Hall of Fame.

He continues his love of wrestling as a long-time coach for Brandon MacNaught at Bainbridge-Guilford, helping develop all wrestlers but taking special pride in coaching a long list of sectional and state champions in the lighter weights. At age 31, Tony showed he still had the goods, winning the 2002 Eastern Nationals in the open division, still at his college weight of 142 pounds!

Tony's daughter Megan is now a Division 1 soccer goalkeeper at Binghamton University and son Cody continues to wrestle as a Bainbridge-Guilford student-athlete.