The Colonie Central High School Athletic Hall of Fame has announced the inductees for the Class of 2020. The list includes athletes, coaches, teams, and sports contributors who have made a significant impact on the Colonie Central High School Athletic program.
“The idea behind the Athletic Hall of fame is to establish a motivating influence for our students to excel in athletics and in the community, “ said Joe Guardino, athletic director. “Each of the individuals or groups who have received this honor has been recognized for achievements that foster pride, display good sportsmanship, and support citizenship in our schools and throughout the community.”
The following sports contributors will be recognized during an induction ceremony which is tentatively set for Thursday, Oct 1 at Sand Creek Middle School Auditorium.
Class of 2020
Barry Brown, Track (’62)
Barry Brown placed third in New York state at the cross country championships for the Raiders in 1961 and went to Providence College on a cross country scholarship. Brown was an All American in 1965.
After graduating from Providence, Brown became a world-class steeplechaser and road racer. He won multiple national and world championships and was part of the first father-son duo to break the four-minute mile in the US. Brown is a National Masters record holder and United States runner of the year multiple times in his age division. He has competed in three Olympic trials during his career. Brown is a member of the Road Racing Club of America Hall of Fame and the Capital District Track and Field Hall of Fame.
Michele Karangwa (Blot), Basketball (’02)
Michele Karangwa (Blot) led the Lady Raiders basketball team to the 2001 New York State Class A championship and the 2001 New York State Federation Championships. She scored 43 points in the federation game, a record that stood for 20 years. Over her career, the lady Raiders were 72 and 4 with Karangwa on the floor. She was named McDonald’s All American, Street and Smith All American, All-State first team (2002), a two time Channel 13 All-Star, Suburban Council Player of the year (2002), and Capital District Basketball Hall of Fame inductee (2012).
Caitlin Cucchiella (Colfer), Soccer (‘05)
Caitlin Cucchiella (Colfer) was a scoring machine at Colonie. She was the first Suburban Council player to score 100 goals in her career. Cucchiella was three times named to all-state teams as well as two-times All American, two-times ALL-State, Suburban Council, Section II, and Fox 23 player of the year recognitions. She went on to have a successful career at The Ohio State University and played for national teams throughout the country and abroad including Ireland, Spain, and Portugal. Cucchiella coached at the collegiate level at Sage College and the University at Albany
1999 Girls XC Team (‘99)
The Girls XC team of 1999 won the New York state championships and the Federation Championships and ranked number three in the country that year. Team members included Katie Twarog, Jen Kramer, Ashleigh Bordwell, Nicole Susser, Ashley Trembley, Sarah Lamback, and Julie La Frano. All members of the team received all-state recognition. In dominant fashion at the 1999 New York start meet, the team scored 23 points with the second-place team a distant 117 points. The icing on the cake, the team also won the cross country Fall Scholar-Athlete team award with a 97.1 GPA!
Dennis Foley, Lacrosse (‘94)
Dennis Foley was a two-time Section II All-Star in 1993 and 1994. He was also a National High School All American in 1994. Foley was asked to play in the National High School All-Star game in Baltimore his senior year. Foley completed his high school career as the Section II all-time leading scorer. Foley went on to play Division III lacrosse at Nazareth College. He led Nazareth to the 1997 Division III national championship crown where he scored two goals and was the team’s second-leading scorer that season. In 1998, they were national runner-ups where Foley scored three goals and two assists in the finals. Foley was a Division III All American and Super six conference all-star. In 1999, due to an injury, he started the season late and still received conference all-star recognition and played in the National College North-South All-Star game. Foley scored a goal in every national championship game for two years. He was inducted into the Nazareth Sports Hall of Fame in 2007.
Paul Gerstenberger, Soccer (‘05)
Paul Gerstenberger was a dominant force on the soccer field from 2001 to 2004 for the Garnet Raiders. He was a three-time Suburban Council and Section 2 All-Star. In 2004, he was named Section 2 Class A player of the year, NSCAA All-State and NSCAA All-East honors. He concluded his high school career as the all-time assist leader at Colonie. Gerstenberger received a scholarship to Boston College to play soccer and played in 63 games. He was named to the ACC all-tournament team in 2007. Gerstenberger played on the National U18 team in Northern Ireland and was chosen as an Olympic alternate for the U23 Olympic Team pool. In 2009, Gerstenberger was drafted professionally by the Columbus Crew of Major League Soccer.
Matt Stenglein, Wrestler (’01)
Matt Stenglein wrestled varsity at Colonie in 7th and 12th grade and racked up 221 career wins, which was a section 2 record at the time. Stenglein was a section 2 champion four times. Stenglein also placed in the New York state championships four times and received all-state recognition. He still holds the Colonie record for most section 2 championships in school history. Stenglein also had a successful Freestyle and Greco-Roman career representing New York state multiple times at the national tournament in Fargo, ND. In 1998, Stenglein won a Greco Roman Cadet National Championship at 121lbs. Stenglein is currently on the Colonie High School Wrestling staff.
Arthur Hutton, Football, Basketball, Baseball (’40)
Arthur Hutton was a dominant three-sport athlete for Roessleville High school, currently Colonie High School, in the late 1930’s. Hutton was a running back for Roessleville Steamrollers, a six-man football team in 1939 and led them to the championship game of the Central Hudson Valley league championships. Hutton also led the basketball team to the finals of the league championships in 1939. He was the team’s season-high scorer with 65 points and was named to the league’s all-star team as a forward for the second year in a row. He was the first player to be named all-star two years in a row in the Central Hudson Valley League’s history. Hutton’s senior year of baseball was the fourth time Roessleville won the Central Hudson Valley league championship. In the Spring of 1940, Hutton signed up for the National Guard and served in WWII. Unfortunately, at the end of WWII Hutton died serving his country. Soon after the passing of Arthur Hutton, Colonie High School created an athletic award recognizing the senior male and female outstanding multi-sport athletes. This award is currently given annually at the senior awards night at Colonie High School.
Frank Myers, Coach (’67)
Frank Myers graduated from SUNY Albany with a Bachelor’s Degree in 1968 and a Master’s Degree in 1977. He was a business teacher at Colonie Central High School for many years. He was the first girls outdoor track coach at Colonie and began the popular Colonie recreation department’s summer track meets and Dynamic Duo road race. As a coach, he has to his credit, two New York state championship girls cross country teams, a Federation State Championship, a national indoor mile championship, a two-time state champion 1600 meter runner and a Penn Relays’ 1500 Champion. Coach Myers continues to coach Cross Country and track at Colonie High school heading into his 52nd year of coaching. Coach Myers will also be inducted into the Capital Region Track, Field, and Cross Country Hall of Fame this year.
Don Myers, Track (’63)
Don Myers has been an avid runner, athlete, and friend to the youth of Colonie. A multi-letterman in cross country running, outdoor track, and basketball while a student at Colonie, Myers was the school record holder in the one-mile run from 1967-1975. He went on to earn a bachelor’s degree in Physical Education from the State University at Cortland and a master’s degree from Russell Sage College. Myers was awarded the Hudson-Mohawk Road Runners Club Distinguished Service Award for his work with the Colonie Recreation Department’s summer track program, which he helped start in 1968, and for his sponsorship of the Colonie Dynamic Duo road race which had 1979 as its inaugural year. Myers was also a hero and was recognized for saving two people who had fallen through the ice on Saratoga Lake in the winter of 1989. He and the other rescuers were given an award by the New York State Legislature and the event was filmed by WTEN Channel 10. Myers has been a member of the New York State Recreation and Parks Society and a charter member of the Capital District Track Officials Association.