CALEDONIA, N.Y. -- Tomarris Bell is the kind of guy who walks into Denny’s late on a Saturday night and orders the whole right page of the menu.
And then tacks on two desserts.
It’s not because he’s a voracious eater. Rather, it’s the case of the McQuaid senior wanting to sample a little bit of everything and not be tied down to anything unless absolutely necessary.
That’s been the modus operandi for him throughout his career as a junior high and high school athlete in Section V, where he has etched his name in the books as one of the finest all-around athletes to emerge from the Rochester area.
Bell has dabbled in cross country, football, basketball, wrestling and track in recent years. He wraps up his scholastic career Friday and Saturday in the New York State Public High School Athletic Association track and field championships at Cicero-North Syracuse still unsure how to respond to the question regarding which sport is his favorite.
“I get asked that question all the time and I just say I don’t know because I have fun with all of them,” Bell said Friday after winning the pentathlon in Section V’s state qualifier with a score of 3,511 points. “I like to try everything. I’ve even wanted to give golf a try because I like new challenges.”
Tiger Woods has nothing to worry about in the way of competition, but Bell is experienced and talented enough in track and field to be an impending threat to any number of elite performers in the sport.
And, oh yeah, we’re back to the issue about being unable to choose a favorite because Bell treats track events like he does sports in general: The 5-foot-11, 185-pound senior loves ‘em all. Though he’ll do the Division I pentathlon this weekend, he would have been a contender in the high hurdles and both vertical jumps – never mind the fact that he won the National Scholastic Indoor Track Championships high jump in March by clearing 6-11½.
Bell has been running track since seventh grade at Frederick Douglass Middle School in Rochester. He’s signed to continue his career in that sport at the University of Buffalo, where he’ll eventually specialize in one or two events – unless, of course, he goes the decathlon route.
However, that would require taking up the pole vault, which has been about the only obstacle he has been unable to overcome thus far due to logistics – you just don’t get a lot of high schools buying poles that are rated for 185-pound competitors.
“I really do want to learn,” he said. “I’ve wanted to try it but they never had a pole big enough for me. It looks like a lot of fun – until you break a pole and fall, I guess.”
Bell is fully aware that they do have mats to cushion the fall in the pole vault. The same could be said for the high jump, but they don’t work if you don’t set them up. Take last March, for instance, when Bell won the high jump at the national meet in the New York Armory.
Whereas the rest of the top competitors were coming off a full indoor season, Bell prepared for the meet by playing basketball for McQuaid. By the time the Knights’ season ended and the gymnasium wasn’t being used by other teams Bell found himself with precious little time to prepare.
“By the time I was able to get in I was like, ‘Wait I’m too lazy to pull out these mats,” he said with a smile. “’Forget about it. I’ll just jog.’”
Bell survived two misses at 6-10.25 but was the only one of the three remaining competitors to clear the bar on the first try at the winning height.
“I loved having the pressure on me for the last jump,” Bell said. “It just all came together. Now my body was yelling at me the next day ... but the meet worked out for me.”
The spring season has gone largely as planned. Bell, coming off second place in the state pentathlon as a junior, shattered the Section V record at his league championship meet last month with 3,707 points. His 3,511 at the state qualifier was deceptive because he left points on the table with only a 6-6 high jump, a 37-3 shot put and a leisurely 5:05 jog in the 1,500 meters.
Bell wouldn’t dare say it, but anyone else planning to win this weekend had better be ready to venture into the 3,750 range just to have a chance.
“It’s all coming together,” he says.
More Track and Field: Halpin goes low in the 800
* Iona Prep senior Sean Halpin excelled on his home track in the Eastern States Championships, going 1:51.55 in the 800 meters to qualify for the USA Track Junior Nationals. It was the state's second-fastest time this season.
* Shenendehowa’s Alex Leuchanka won in 9:06.3 to knock a second off the Section II 3,200-meter mark mark of Jeff Dybas of Queensbury from 23 seasons ago. Otis Ubriaco of Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake was a strong second in 9:09.9. Leuchanka's time is the fastest in the state this season.
Saratoga senior Alex King, in his first season in the sport, won the Division I long jump with a leap of 22-10 3/4 to break his own school record.
* Marcellus star Chris Stogsdill won twice at the Section III state qualifier and will be looking to break the Central New York 3,200-meter mark by Tommy Gruenewald of Fayetteville-Manlius (8:59.32 in 2006) at next weekend's state meet. The Iona-bound senior won the Division 2 race at that distance in 9:27.43 and also ran a 1:52.8 anchor for the 3,200-meter relay team 8:00.23.
* In the Section VI qualifier, Evan Tsembelis of Grand Island edged Joe Whelan of Hamburg at the tape to capture the 1,600 meters in 4:19.08 and Hamburg senior Will Cole broke his sectional mark in the 400 hurdles by clocking :53.09.
Girls Golf: Commack’s Lee rallies in second round
Commack’s Suzie Lee began the day six strokes down but shot a second-round 73 to finish at 148 and win the NYSPHSAA girls golf championship by one shot at Foxfire Golf Club in Baldwinsville.
Anna Austano of Wappingers was second at 149, a shot ahead of Ithaca junior Rebecca Studin, who followed her first-round 69 with an 81.
Led by Lee, Section XI won the team competition by 40 shots over Section V (1,164).
Baseball: South Kortright achieves a triple crown
* Dan Many threw a two-hitter and drove in four runs for South Kortright in a 7-1 Section IV Class D title-game victory over Jefferson. It gave SK championships in soccer, basketball and baseball in the same school year, and all were coached by Bob VanValkenburgh.
The 26-0 basketball team earned the NYSPHSAA Class D championship in Glens Falls in March, highlighting a 61-4-1 mark for the three squads heading into baseball’s state tournament this week.
Eight baseball starters played on all three championship teams. Five of them formed the starting line-up in basketball, and all were also starters in soccer.
"This is the year you dream of," VanValkenburgh told The Daily Star in Oneonta. "It's just a dream season, just a great group of athletes who want to win."
* Jaime Schultz finally allowed a hit after 12 1/3 innings of flawless work dating to the last game of the regular season, but Maple Hill still cruised past Cambridge for the Section II Class DD final, 14-0.
The right-hander closed the season with four no-hit innings against Rensselaer, held Voorheesville hitless in the Wildcats’ sectional quarterfinal win and was untouched in relief against Lake George in the semifinals. Schultz finished with 11 strikeouts in five-plus innings vs. Cambridge, hit a solo home run in the top of the first and scored four runs.
Later in the week, Fort Plain was one strike away from the state tournament before Shane McInerney stroked a run-scoring single and Nick Papas' grounder was misplayed into two more runs, completing Maple Hill's 10-8 victory in the state qualifier.
Schultz struck out eight in three innings of work to raise his total to 37 whiffs in 15 1/3 postseaon innings.
Boys Lacrosse: Yorktown plays like a champion, again
* Lakeland/Panas built a 9-4 lead in the third quarter, gave it all back and took the lead again on a goal by Shawn Honovich with 3:49 to go. And then Yorktown played like a champion. The Cornhuskers, who have appeared in 30 straight Section I finals — and won 28 of them — got a goal in the final minute of regulation from Kevin Interlicchio and a sudden-death winner from John Rangan for an 11-10 victory.
* Sayville captured its first sectional title in the ninth season of the program, topping Smithtown West, 11-9, in the Section XI Class B final. Doug Meehan took a pass from Charlie Podgurski with 5:30 left to break a 9-9 tie with his fourth goal of the game.
* West Islip, the state's second-ranked Class A team, roared to a 9-5 victory to win its fifth straight Section XI championship — all over Ward Melville. Junior Nicky Galasso (three goals) scored as time expired in the first half to tie the game, and West Islip took command with three goals in third quarter. Andrew Hodgson connected for four goals.
* Brothers Dan and Justin McKinney each scored a hat trick in the first quarter as Niskayuna raced to 10-0 lead en route to a a 20-0 win over Saugerties in the first round of the NYSPHSAA Class B tournament. Niskayuna has outscored its four postseason opponents by 77-3.
* Section X advanced two teams to the state quarterfinals for the first time. Class C Salmon River pulled away late to beat Binghamton Seton Catholic, 18-10, and St. Lawrence scored an 8-7 win in Class B over Chenango Forks in first-round action.
Salmon River set up a state quarterfinal against second-ranked LaFayette, which features former Shamrocks Miles and Lyle Thompson. The brothers transferred earlier this school year. Seth Oakes led the attack with seven goals (five in the first half) and four assists.
Girls Lacrosse: Carthage acing a hectic schedule
* Carthage overpowered host Potsdam, 21-2, in a state quarterfinal. Junior attacker Katie Ferris scored four goals in the first half to help build a 14-1 lead and assure Carthage's sixth victory in 11 days.
* Yorktown dominated Niskayuna in the Class B quarterfinals, 16-9, a year after the Silver Warriors ended the 'Huskers' season in the NYSPHSAA playoffs. Jaimie Morrison (six), Lindsay Scott (four) and Brittney Mabus (three) accounted for 13 goals.
* Two days after a thrilling win over Baldwinsville in the Section III Class A final, West Genesee opened state tournament play with a 17-7 triumph vs. Ithaca. The Wildcats broke to an 11-1 lead in the first half, and Maria DiFato finished with three goals and three assists.
* Janine Hillier's goal with 3:13 to play built a two-goal lead, and Farmingdale held on for a 13-12 victory against Northport in the Class A quarterfinals. It was the Dalers' fourth straight Long Island championship. Melanie Raso scored three of her five goals in the second half for the winners.
* Garden City won its fifth straight Long Island Class B title with a 16-3 victory vs. Sayville. The Trojans ran off 14 straight goals for a 15-1 lead. Mikaela Rix and Caroline McTiernan each scored four times.
Softball: Liverpool goes the extra mile
* Kalyn Howard doubled home the go-ahead run and scored what proved to be the winning run in the top of the 10th inning of Liverpool's 6-5 victory against Cicero-North Syracuse in the Section III Class AA championship.
* Eighth-grader Lacey Clark hit a two-out single with the bases loaded in the 10th inning to score Brigid Moore with the winning run as Victor edged Mercy, 3-2, in the Section V Class A final.
* North Rockland beat Ursuline, 2-0, for the Section I Class AA championship — the school's first in the sport since 1984 — as senior Samantha Welsh allowed two hits, walked one and struck out nine.
* Fairport scored eight runs on six two-out hits in the fourth inning, and senior Stacy Kuwik pitched a one-hitter with 14 strikeouts as the Red Raiders rolled to a 9-0 win over Webster Thomas in the Section V Class AA state qualifier. Kuwik singled and hit a two-run home run in the big inning.
John Schiano, who has written about high school sports in western and central New York for more than 25 years, covers New York for MaxPreps. He may be reached at johnschianosports@gmail.com.
