SPORTS HALL of FAME ATHLETE
Erin Stanton-Silva

After a year of mostly female inductees, Erin gets the distinction of being the sole Lady Warrior getting her due honors. Her formative years in Unadilla involved playing alongside the guys in Little League baseball and rec basketball which gave Erin the mindset that she could play any sport with anyone. Did we also mention she was briefly a cheerleader?

It was in middle school when Erin and her family moved into the Sidney district and her competitive spirit kicked in for all three seasons. There was soccer and basketball...but track & field?

"Coach (Larry) Armour saw something in me back then," she said. Amazing insight, considering Erin never knew how to throw either a shot put or discus! But she took the challenge from her new coach. Always a work in progress, both events solidified her place on the team. As a sophomore, shot put wins at invitationals at Oneonta and Monticello were a preview. Erin would win the Sus League and Section IV titles (setting a personal best) before enduring a sub par day at States a week later. Still, she finished third in the finals.

Junior year, her PR climbed to just under 39 feet. Erin finished strong with a first place finish at the NYS meet. In 1998, her last go-round was met with weeks of high expectations to repeat as champion. After winning at Sectionals, Erin didn't wait long at States. It was her first attempt of the day which landed a foot farther than the nearest challenger. That made TWO NYS crowns! Oh, and she also set school marks in two almost non-existent events for Sidney when, with virtually no practice, she won the hammer throw and javelin throws at the Monticello Games.

Team sports were also prevalent for Erin Stanton. She made the varsity soccer team as a freshman and blended with older teammates from the start. In the 1995 (soph) season, a .500 record was misleading, as Sidney upset NYS #9 and top seed Elmira Notre Dame in the Class C quarters. Momentum carried over at Unatego, too. Battling the powerful Spartans on their turf, Erin took a pass from Michelle Erbe and sent a bicycle kick into the goal for the only score of the 1-0 upset special. They dropped the final to Seton CC.

The upset bug hit during 1996 in reverse. Erin and Michelle led the team in scoring but Trumansburg played spoiler, upsetting the Warriors in the C semis. Erin would forgo soccer as a senior to concentrate on academics. And prepare for basketball, of course.

As a general statement, Erin's abilities were as a point guard and playmaker on offense. Defensively, it all depended. She could take the opponent's hot shot guard or challenge a post player despite an obvious height disadvantage. Team play fell short of predicted success until Erin's senior season 1997-98. Taking on state ranked league foes like Oneonta, Greene and B-G was a normal occurrence. A 17-7 record was hard-earned, with Erin's performance and leadership good for all-state recognition. Her 29 points led Sidney's scoring in an 81-80 OT thriller versus the Bobcats in the Section IV Class C semis at a packed Hartwick gym. It's regarded as one of the best-played local basketball games ever.

Erin's love of technology began at BOCES. She interned with Mike Dionne at Sidney HS, which led to choosing SUNY-Oswego for a college, where she played two seasons each of basketball and softball. Again, academics prevailed. Erin has been a Robotics coach and technology teacher in the Prince William (Va.) School system her entire professional career. She absolutely loves her job. Let's all welcome her back to Sidney as Erin Stanton-Silva joins her 2019 peers in the Sidney Alumni Sports Hall of Fame.