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JEANETTE PADDOCK
Elected in 1983 ... graduated from Spring Valley H.S. in 1959 ... was a teacher and coach for 19 years, mostly in Colorado ... coached tennis, volleyball, track and field, and gymnastics ... director of the swim program at Nyack Field Club 1961 to 1965 ... at Spring Valley she was named Outstanding Senior Girl Athlete ... in a high school CYO basketball game, she once scored 50 points in a game ... as a ninth-grader she made the boys’ baseball team but, as a female, was ineligible to play ... she was the first girl in Rockland to play in a Kiwanis boys’ youth baseball league ... as a pitcher, she struck out 29 and allowed seven hits in three games, and also played shortstop ... in high school and college (Penn State), she took part, at one time or another, in soccer, hockey, basketball, softball, baseball, volleyball, tennis, golf and gymnastics ... in Colorado, she excelled in tennis ... earned No.1 ranking for age 35-and-older singles in Colorado five straight years (1978 through 1982) and in doubles was No.1 in 1980 ... in 1982, she won three open singles tournaments and six tournaments in the age 35 singles ... was honored as 1980 YWCA Colorado Sportswoman of the Year for Masters Tennis ... 1981 Outstanding Woman in Southern Colorado ... 1982 Principals Award at Air Academy H.S. ... 1982 Coach of the Year in Tennis ... 1983, voted one of the top 10 coaches for all sports in Colorado ... was namedOutstanding Senior Female Athlete at Penn State her senior year.
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Class of 1976
Nanuet
Paul Pietropaolo’s interest in wrestling began at
home. His older brother, Jim, would come
home after wrestling practice and try out all his
new moves on Paul and his brothers. Most
evenings, the living room furniture would be
cleared away and the boys would “go at it”. This
fraternal competition, combined with Nanuet’s
Saturday morning wrestling program, gave Paul
his start in wrestling.
By the time he reached high school, wrestling
had become a passion for Paul. He went on to
establish himself as one of the premier wrestlers
in Rockland County history. His accomplishments
were extraordinary. Paul was the first
Rockland County wrestler to reach 100 career
victories, and held the record for most victories
(106) when he graduated. In high school Paul
was undefeated in the Rockland County dual
meets with a record of 35-0. Along the way,
Paul was a three time Rockland County tournament
champion and a four time Section 9
champion. In 1976 Paul was voted the Most
Outstanding Wrestler in the Rockland County
tournament and placed three times in the New
York State tournament, including a second
place finish in 1975. In 1976 Paul was a member
of the Section 9 team representing the USA
against the Polish Junior Olympic Freestyle
Wrestling team.
After graduation from Nanuet High, Paul continued
his career at Cornell University, earning
four varsity letters in wrestling. In his senior
year, Paul was named “Wrestler of the Meet” at
the Princeton University tournament. In 1980
Paul placed third in the United States Wrestling
Federation Pennsylvania Regional tournament.
Paul was best known as a wrestler, but his
accomplishments reach beyond the mat. While
in high school he played varsity soccer for two
years and was the captain of the team in his senior
year. In the spring Paul was a member of the
very successful Nanuet track team. In his junior and senior years that track team was the
Rockland County and Section 9 Class B
Champions. Paul competed in the pole vault
and 220 yard dash.
Professionally, Paul, the holder of degrees in
landscape architecture from Cornell and a
M.B.A in marketing from Iona College, works
for the Port Authority of New York and New
Jersey. He is the engineer for capital security
projects and is involved with the reconstruction
of the World Trade Center Paul is a survivor of
both the 1993 and the 2001 terrorist attacks on
the World Trade Center. He was awarded The
Port Authority of New York and New Jersey
Civilian Commendation Award for Bravery, for
actions taken on September 11, 2001, concerning
the evacuation of staff from the World
Trade Center.
Paul and his wife Susan have two daughters, Jill
aged 20, a student at Villanova, and Amanda, an
18 year old senior at Clarkstown South High
School. They are still county residents, residing
in New City. |
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BRIT PATTERSON
Inducted in 1980 ... 1936 Pearl River H.S. alumnus ... four-sport athlete who was a primary contributor to five Rockland Public School Athletic League team championships in his junior and senior years ... Patterson earned 15 varsity letters during his high school athletic career ... was named All-County seven times in four sports: three times in basketball, twice in foot-ball, and once each in track and baseball ... he was selected by one local weekly newspaper as the player of the year in Rockland County football in 1934 ... played offensive and defensive end and was an outstanding kicker ... Patterson, a 6-foot-1 forward, led the Rockland PSAL in scoring in the 1933-34 basketball season ... he was captain of the Pirates’ basketball team in 1934-35 and captain of the football team in 1935 ... he played four years of varsity baseball at three different positions: first base, third base and left field ... also pitched on occasion ... he helped lead the Pirates to Rockland PSAL titles in baseball in 1935 and 1936, in basketball in 1935 and ‘36, and in football in 1935 ... the 1935 football and basketball teams were undefeated ... in track, he threw the discus and put the shot ... a severe knee injury during the baseball season his junior year slowed him considerably but he still managed to make All-County in two sports his senior year ... played briefly in Class A pro baseball ... was named to the all-tournament team in a 1943 county basketball tournament at the Nyack YMCA ... was later a Little League and Babe Ruth League manager and also coached football and basketball ... he died in 1979. |
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BILL PERRY
Became a Hall of Famer in 1982 ... graduated from Nyack H.S. in 1931 ... member of a family whose roots trace back several generations in Nyack ... great all-round athlete who especially excelled in basketball ... one of the premier basketball players of his era, a standout playmaker and scorer ... as a youth at St. Ann’s Grammar School in Nyack, he competed on the hardwood against semipro teams and other teams of note during that period, including the House of David and Hawaiian All-Stars ... was said to have performed on even terms against the paid athletes of semipro teams ... Perry also was a superb competitor in football, baseball, softball and tennis ... earned three letters at Nyack High ... worked as a physical training supervisor at Liberty Street School in Nyack ... he was president of the Nyack Express Company, a moving and storage firm, from 1942 until he retired in 1975 ... for many years he sold used furniture and antiques to Nyack area residents at discount prices.
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LEON PESNER
JOSEPH R. HOLLAND LIFETIME
ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
Leon Pesner is being honored tonight for his many years of dedication and devotion to the Rockland County Sports Hall of Fame. He began his service for The Hall of Fame, shortly after it was founded by Joe Holland in 1973-74, when he became a member of the first Rockland County Sports Hall of Fame executive committee. Never one to sit back in his life, Leon took charge right away, selling tickets and promoting the annual dinner, which he ran for many years (1975-96) until he and Doris relocated to Florida in 1996. Pesner served as Chairman of the Rockland County Sports Hall of Fame for nine terms, longer than anyone else to date.
When the introductory and acceptance speeches were becoming too “long-winded” (going beyond the 3 and 5 minute limitations), Leon would blow a shrill whistle to bring the speaker to a quick conclusion.
Leon was instrumental in securing the donation of three trophy cabinets and having them placed in The Rockland County Office Building in New City.
He began his athletic supporting campaigns upon graduating in 1939 from Spring Valley High School, where he earned two letters in basketball. In the 1960’s he founded a booster organization for Spring Valley football, and organized the annual dinners for them and The Pony Express League. Leon was appointed Commissioner of The Spring Valley Adult Softball League, prompting the Rockland County Umpires Association to acknowledge this league as the best organized league in The County.
Also active throughout his life as a leader in The Pythians, Fire Department, March of Dimes, local and county politics, and his synagogue, Leon Pesner was born to lead others.
His son Steven once said of Leon, “He is that special type of person who would wake up in the morning and look out the window- not to see what the weather was like, but to see whether there was someone outside in need of his assistance.”
In addition to Steven, Leon is survived by his widow Doris, son Alan (coach at Nyack High), and daughter Susan. |
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JOSEPH “BISCUIT” PICARELLO
Installed in 1992 ... 1952 Haverstraw H.S. graduate ... baseball, football and basketball standout ... played four years of varsity baseball, earning All-County recognition twice ... three years of varsity football, making second team All-County his junior year and unanimous first team All-County his senior season ... he also played two years of varsity basketball and gained a berth on the All-County team his senior year ... after high school, he played semipro baseball for the Emerson-Westwood Merchants of the Metropolitan Baseball League ... while serving in the Air Force, he played on his unit’s all-star team ... Picarello took an active role for many years as a manager on all levels in the Haverstraw Little League, including Big League ... an avid competitive bowler, he averaged 200 or better for 10 years and once rolled an 800 three-game series ... has shot in the 70s in golf ... Picarello is also a member of the North Rockland Sports Hall of Fame.
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HOWIE PIERSON
Charter Hall of Fame member, inducted in 1974 ... 1954 Tappan Zee H.S. alumnus ... one of the most accomplished of all Rockland athletes ... multi-talented scholastic athlete, college baseball star, pro baseball player, amateur golf champion, outstanding coach, physical education teacher and athletic director ... at Tappan Zee, was awarded 13 letters in four sports and merited All-Rockland honors in football, basketball and baseball his senior year ... in baseball, he earned All-County acclaim four straight years ... also high jumped, pole vaulted and ran on 880-yard relay for track team ... he played on 1953-54 TZ basketball team, the first in Rockland ever to score more than 100 points in a game (they did it twice) ... at Manhattan College, he played basketball two years, then focused on baseball ... in 1957, his junior year, Pierson, a shortstop, batted .421 to lead the Metropolitan Conference in hitting and spark Manhattan to the conference title ... upon graduation in 1958, he signed with the Philadelphia Phillies and played one season at Williamsport, then during two years of Army duty he led Fort Dix to service titles in baseball and football ... he played one more season of minor league ball before starting a career in education at Tappan Zee ... he taught science and coached baseball, football and basketball there for three years before moving to Rockland Community College in 1965, where he taught physical education and coached basketball and golf ... his first year RCC won the Region 15 basketball crown ... Pierson was RCC athletic director from 1972 to 1997, and remains the school’s golf coach ... Pierson took up golf in his late 20s and became one of the top amateur players in the country by the early 1970s ... he won the Metropolitan Amateur golf championship in 1980, qualified for the U.S. Amateur twice, and played in eight events on the PGA Seniors Tour ... Pierson was the first black baseball captain at Manhattan, the first black high school coach in Rockland, the first black athletic director of a New York State community college, the first black to play in the U.S. Amateur golf championship, and among the first black players signed by the Phillies organization. |
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NORINNE POWERS
When Norinne Powers was on her game—which is to say, virtually any time she stepped on the basketball court—few players could thwart her scoring moves. Powers, a 6-foot-2 center for Nanuet High School, could create scoring opportunities as well as just about anyone in Rockland scholastic girls’ basketball history.
By the time she graduated in 1989, Powers had established herself as one of the two finest pivot players (along with Nyack’s Dawn Royster) in Rockland girls’ hoop annals. And Powers didn’t stop there. She went on to an outstanding NCAA Division I career at Holy Cross and played professionally in Germany for four years.
A stellar three-sport athlete at Nanuet—soccer goalkeeper, basketball center, and softball shortstop, pitcher and outfielder—Powers carved her greatest niche on the basketball hardwood. In her senior year she was named New York State Female Athlete of the Year—for all sports—by USA Today, as well as New York State Player of the Year by the state sportswriters association and New York State "Miss Basketball" by the state basketball coaches association.
That shining season—1988-89—Powers averaged a county-record 30.2 points a game (a record 697 points in 23 games), as well as 17.2 rebounds and 5 blocked shots a game. She finished her four-year varsity career with a then-county-record 1,609 points—it still ranks No. 3 on the all-time county list—and 1,107 rebounds.
In her last three years, Powers led the Golden Knights to records of 21-2, 21-3 and 20-3; three conference championships; and two Section 1 runner-up finishes (one each in Class B and C), both times losing to the eventual state champion, Our Lady of Lourdes. She made All-Section 1 all three years. Powers’ brother, Dave, was Nanuet’s head coach during her four years on the basketball team and for two of her four years in soccer.
In the fall, Powers was a four-year starting soccer goalkeeper who used her height and agility to help lead the Knights to a combined mark of 57-20-4. In her senior season, she posted a then-county record of 13 shutouts—giving her a still-standing Rockland record of 40 career shutouts—to spearhead Nanuet to the Section 1 Class C title and advancement to the state quarterfinals. All told, Powers earned three All-County and All-Section citations apiece and one third-team All-State designation. Her teams won two conference and two sectional championships.
In the spring, Powers was a four-year, All-League softball starter who earned All-County and All-Section honors her senior year as a pitcher and shortstop, when the Knights won the Section 1 Class C title and advanced to the state quarterfinals. And in the summer, she played on gold- and bronze-medal-winning teams for the Hudson Valley Region scholastic women’s basketball team in the Empire State Games.
After earning a full athletic scholarship to Holy Cross College in Worcester, Mass., Powers built upon her high school success with a sterling four-year career for the Crusaders. A four-year starter, she scored 1,652 career points and pulled down 1,008 career rebounds playing against tough Division I competition.
The accolades poured in as she progressed from All-Rookie Team honoree her freshman year to Patriot League Player of the Year her junior and senior years. Powers helped lead Holy Cross to Patriot League titles her sophomore and senior years, which earned the Crusaders berths in the NCAA Division I Tournament both years. Holy Cross upset Rutgers, the No. 2 seed in the East Regional, her senior year and advanced to the second round before exiting.
Powers’ golden season culminated in her being named Holy Cross NCAA Woman of the Year in 1993, as well as All-Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference. In 1999 she was elected to the Holy Cross Athletic Hall of Fame.
With no professional women’s basketball league yet established in the United States, Powers opted to go the European route after college. She enjoyed a successful four-year career in Germany. Her first year, 1993-94, with SNM-Mohringern-Stuttgart, she was team captain and leading scorer, averaging 18.5 points a game. She then spent three seasons with BG Ludwigburg, also based in Stuttgart, averaging a team-leading 19.4 points a game and captaining the club to the league championship in 1996-97. A severe ankle injury ended her basketball-playing career.
Powers, who turns 31 on April 21, spent a season as the assistant women’s basketball coach at Marist College in Poughkeepsie, then pursued graduate studies in art history at the University of Oregon. She is now a personal trainer in Eugene, Ore. |
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DENNIS POZSAR
Elected in 1997 ... graduated from Clarkstown H.S. in 1959 ... winningest soccer coach in Rockland scholastic history with 275 victories ... has coached the Rams’ soccer team since 1963 ... his teams won the championship of Section 9 (Rockland, Orange, Ulster, Sullivan counties) in 1964, 1966, 1974, 1975, 1982 and 1983 ... he also owns the distinction of coaching his teams to league titles 30 years apart: the Rams won the Rockland PSAL crown in 1966, and his 1996 unit captured the League I-B (Rockland large schools) title ... he coached junior varsity boys basketball for 15 years, had a stint as freshman baseball coach, and currently coaches the Clarkstown North girls’ basketball team besides continuing as the boys’ soccer coach ... as an athlete, Pozsar starred in soccer, basketball and baseball ... a three-year starter in soccer, he was captain and leading scorer his junior and senior years, and he led the team to the county championship in 1957, his junior year ... he was a three-year All-County recipient ... in basketball, Pozsar was a three-year varsity player and co-captain his senior year, 1958-59, when Clarkstown won its first Rockland PSAL basketball title, a co-championship with Tappan Zee ... he was second team All-Rockland that season ... in baseball, Pozsar also was a three-year starter who helped lead the Rams to a county championship in 1959 ... he won 7 and lost 1 for the 11-1 Rams and pitched a no-hitter in a 3-0 victory over Haverstraw ... at Hartwick (N.Y.) College, he was a four-year starter in soccer, team scoring leader his junior year, 1961, and team co-captain his senior year, 1962 ... that year Hartwick won the New York State championship and advanced to the eight-team NCAA Tournament.
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