MaxPreps Soccer Tour of Champions celebrates Baker High School

The 13th Annual MaxPreps Tour of Champions presented by the Army National Guard passed through upstate New York on Friday, Jan. 26 to honor Baker (Baldwinsville, N.Y.) High School and its girls soccer team for winning a state championship and earning a high ranking nationally.

Having knocked off Massapequa 2-0 in the NYSPHSAA Class 2A state championship match, the Bees completed a fantastic 18-2 season and claimed a No. 14 finish in MaxPreps' National Rankings!

With the entire student body present, Baker High School welcomed MaxPreps and the New York Army National Guard to campus for a special school assembly to celebrate the accomplishments of the Bees. At approximately 2 p.m., Casey Vanderstouw opened the ceremony by leading the pep band in a series of songs sure to fire up the student body.

At the top of the hour, Principal Donald Root opened the ceremony by welcoming special guests in attendance and introducing athletic director Chris Campolieta. Campolieta then highlighted key moments and accomplishments of the girls soccer season and congratulated the Bees for earning recognition as one of the best soccer teams in the country.

By being named to the MaxPreps Tour of Champions, Baker finished ahead of 99.9% of girls soccer teams nationally! One by one Campolieta asked each coach and player of the girls soccer team to stand to her feet. Following a huge round of applause by the crowd, Mr. Campolieta introduced MaxPreps Representative Jon Van Riper.

Van Riper talked briefly about MaxPreps, the history of the Tour of Champions, and the prestige of the Army National Guard national ranking trophy presented by the Army National Guard. He congratulated head coach Kathy Morse and the Bees for winning the state championship and for being the fourteenth-ranked team in the United States. Van Riper concluded by introducing Staff Sergeant Adam Toussaint of the New York Army National Guard. SSG Toussaint praised the Bees for their hard work, determination and noted the importance of teamwork and dedication to the mission of winning the state championship.

As the students cheered in support, SSG Toussaint presented the Army National Guard national ranking trophy to Morse. A couple of Baker players closed by thanking the community of Baldwinsville for all of their support. Following the ceremony, MaxPreps caught up with Morse and team captains Carolyn Brussel and Gabby Piontkowski, who received the United Soccer Coaches All-American Award earlier this year. Brussel addressed how close friendships allowed the girls to have good team chemistry on the court, while Piontkowski talked about what it meant to her to win the state title in her final season. Morse then spoke about the honor of receiving her team's national ranking.

While Morse will certainly miss her seniors, we look forward to seeing what Baker will accomplish in the future. Congratulations to Coach Morse and to the Baker Bees for winning the 2017-18 state championship!

Click here to view the Baker TOC photo gallery and for more information about the Soccer TOC, please visit the MaxPreps Tour of Champions site.