SPORTS HALL of FAME ATHLETE
Pam DuMond Tarnowski '92
Pam was as complete and versatile an athlete as Sidney High School ever produced, excelling in field hockey, basketball and track & field as a 1992 graduate.
Her first taste of Varsity competition came as a Freshman, when she threw the discus (106'7"), ran the 100 meters in 13.7 and was part of the 4x100 relay team. During the summer, Pam was named Most Outstanding Player at Golden Valley Sports Camp and placed 6th in the Scholastic Discus event at the Empire State Games.
By her Sophomore season, Pam was a bona fide three-sport athlete who blended in well with her older teammates. She started at sweeper on the field hockey team and forward on the basketball squad. She made the All-Tournament team in basketball at the Sidney Tip-off Tournament and won the first of many WCDO "Player of the Game" awards. When track season rolled around, Pam was in fine form, improving in those same events, highlighted by a discus throw of 110' 10".
Pam was always a high honor roll student. Her ability to balance sports and extracurricular activities in school and church - plus maintain a high average - set a great example for others. In fact during her final two years she earned the most achievement points for girls in the Class of 1992.
Her personal and team athletic achievements continued to flourish, too. In the fall of 1990, Sidney won the Class A Section IV title in field hockey and made it to the State Finals before dropping a hard-fought 1-0 decision to Lakeland High School. Pam was still the main line of defense at sweeper; her consistent play led to the first of two WCDO/SFCU "Athlete of the Week" awards.
In basketball that season, she averaged 14.3 points and 9.2 rebounds per game as the Lady Warriors reached the Class C semifinals. Pam was voted MVP of the Susquenango Association's Western Division, as well as MVP of tournaments in Sidney and Oxford.
Pam's expanded role in track & field as a junior proved successful. She was a regular in the discus and sprints, plus the 4x100 relay. The relay was her first Section IV Championship.
Prior to starting her senior year, Pam had a busy summer. She joined her teammates at the Cathy Rush Basketball Camp at Oneonta State, where they finished first and she was the winner of the one-on one and foul shooting competitions and made the camp's all-star team. She also played on the Central field hockey team in the Empire State Games.
No one could have enjoyed a more fulfilling Senior year. The field hockey team won the elusive State title in the largest school division possible - Class A. Despite playing as a Class C school, Sidney blanked Mahopac 1-0 in front of hundreds of screaming, bleacher-bouncing fans at Hartwick College. It capped off a 20-0-2 dream season.
And even with a late start to the basketball season, Pam and the Lady Warriors survived some phenomenal Sus League competition to win the Division I crown. Then, as rival Delhi appeared to have Sidney on the ropes with a seven point lead late in their Section IV Class C final, the team came alive! The "shot heard 'round the Arena" was Pam nailing a three-pointer at the regulation buzzer that tied Delhi and gave the Lady Warriors the momentum to win in overtime.
Pam scored her 1,000th point in the State semifinal versus Cambridge on a typical play - a hard drive to the basket with a drawn foul. But the breaks did not go Sidney's way that day. They lost to Cambridge. Still Pam was named to the All-State team as well as Binghamton's All-Metro team.
After a final track & field season in which she placed third in the discus at the Sectional meet, the end-of-year awards and honors came rolling in for Pam: WCDO Female Athlete of the Year (with Bonnie Shoemaker), WAA Outstanding Senior Athlete, Francis L. Redmond Scholar-Athlete, plus team MVP for field hockey and basketball.
Pam's talents took her to William Smith College, where she enjoyed a unique two-sport career. In field hockey, she went from being a high school State Champ to a Division III National Champ as a Freshman. In basketball, she scored 1216 points and finished in the career top ten at the school for points, rebounds, assists, steals, and field goal percentage. Upon her graduation, Pam ranked FIRST in both career blocked shots (171) and free throw percentage (81.8).
Now almost ten years later, Pam's adult career (she's a sales rep for a physical therapy company) has taken on a new challenge. Along with husband Mark, they are the proud parents of Brooks Patrick Tarnowski, born October 21st!
Congratulations to Pam DuMond Tarnowski, one of Sidney's most versatile athletes - male or female.