See who's in the running and vote for lohud's 2022 Whelan All-Sports Awards
In 2018, we created lohud's new All-Sports Awards. The goal was to honor the best from the year in high school sports in Westchester, Rockland and Putnam Counties.
The awards were named for a local sportswriting icon, Tom Whelan, and are now in their fifth season.
Listed below are our finalists for Athlete of the Year, Large School of the Year, Small School of the Year and Private School of the Year. For the next two weeks on lohud.com, readers will have an opportunity to vote on the athlete or the athletic programs they deem the most worthy winners.
Our staff will then chose our winners and announce them on Aug. 17 on lohud.com and in The Journal News.
Athlete of the Year
Daphne Banino, Ursuline
Sports: Cross-country, track and field
Accolades: Westchester/Putnam cross-country, winter track and spring track and field Athlete of the Year
The case for Banino: The Princeton commit was Section 1's best in the 1,000, the 1,500, the 3,000 and the mile in the winter and was in the top 25 nationally in three of those races. After suffering a broken leg, she returned to post the No. 1 time in Section 1 in the 800 and 1,500 in the spring. Her 1,500 time was the fifth-fastest in the state and her time in the mile ranked the seventh-fastest, all despite having to return from injury.
Daniel D'Ippolito, Somers
Sports: Soccer
Accolades: All-American; Gatorade New York Player of the Year; Westchester/Putnam Boys Soccer Player of the Year
The case for Dippolito: The senior, who is committed to Fordham, led Somers to a state championship and that's no hyperbole. He scored seven of his 29 goals in the semifinals and final combined. D'Ippolito also totaled 38 assists on the year for the Tuskers, and his playmaking earned him All-American status and Gatorade's state Player of the Year. He was the Lower Hudson Valley's only athlete so honored this school year.
Samson Joseph, Suffern
Sports: Football, track and field
Accolades: Rockland County Football Player of the Year; Rockland County indoor and outdoor track and field Athlete of the Year
The case for Joseph: The speedster was an all-state, do-everything star on the football field, then parlayed his speed into standout winter and spring seasons on the track. The Binghamton commit, who led Suffern to winter and spring Section 1 titles, ran the section's No. 1 time in five events this winter and finished top 10 in the state in all five. He was then Section 1's best in the 200 and 400 and No. 2 in the triple jump this spring.
Ajani Sheppard, Iona Prep
Sports: Football
Accolades: MaxPreps' New York Football Player of the Year; CHSFL Offensive Player of the Year; Westchester/Putnam Football Player of the Year
The case for Sheppard: Although he was just a first-year starter at quarterback and only a junior, Sheppard's play propelled the Gaels to city and state championships. He completed 71% of his passes for 2,357 yards and 22 touchdowns while throwing just four interceptions and rushed another 138 times for 1,041 yards and 16 touchdowns. Sheppard, who committed to Old Dominion, is the first player to throw for 2,000 yards and run for 1,000 in county history.
Large School of the Year
Public schools with enrollment numbers of 700 or greater located in Westchester, Rockland and Putnam
Mamaroneck
Section 1 titles: Boys soccer, field hockey, boys tennis
Regional titles: Boys soccer, field hockey
State titles: Boys tennis
The case for the Tigers: Mamaroneck had plenty of success in the fall, winning two team titles. Both teams then advanced to the state final four, but the highlight of the season came in the spring. The boys tennis team sent three players to the state tournament. As a team, that talent also led them to becoming the state's first-ever Division I team champion.
North Rockland
Section 1 titles: Girls volleyball, softball, boys bowling, girls bowling, girls winter track, girls spring track
Regional titles: None
State titles: Boys bowling, girls bowling
The case for the Red Raiders: As usual, North Rockland had success in various sports, but none more so than bowling, where the boys and girls teams swept Section 1 and state titles. In addition to the girls volleyball and softball crowns, the boys basketball team went unbeaten 23-0 before falling to eventual state champ Mount Vernon in the Class AA final. In the spring, Deborah Estabine, who headlined the winter and spring sectional champs, won the shot put at the Loucks Games and became the public-school state and Federation champion in Division I.
Somers
Section 1 titles: Boys soccer, football, baseball
Regional titles: Boys soccer, football
State titles: Boys soccer
The case for the Tuskers: The school pulled off a very rare feat in the fall when two of its boys programs won Section 1 titles. Both reached the state final and the boys soccer team won it all in dominant fashion. In the spring, the baseball team overcame a 3-6 start and won the section as a No. 12 seed. Somers also had individual athletes' shine last school year, highlighted by Julia Wilkinson, the school's first-ever Section 1 diving champ.
Suffern
Section 1 titles: Boys ice hockey, girls lacrosse, girls cross-country, boys winter track, boys spring track
Regional titles: Boys ice hockey, girls lacrosse
State titles: Boys ice hockey
The case for the Mounties: The hockey team went 21-1 and won the Division I state title. They lived up to considerable preseason hype, losing only to Pelham, the Division II state champ. The girls lacrosse team reached the state semifinals and the boys and girls cross-country and track and field teams had plenty of success. Senior Samson Joseph was a headliner in the winter and the spring, logging several Section 1-best times on a pair of sectional championship teams.
Tappan Zee
Section 1 titles: Girls basketball, girls lacrosse, softball, girls spring track
Regional titles: Girls basketball
State titles: None
The case for the Dutchmen: Tappan Zee's girls programs had a dominant season, winning four Section 1 titles, including the rare feat of capturing three in the spring season. The girls basketball team emerged from a deep Class A field and advanced all the way to the state championship game for the first time in program history.
Small School of the Year
Public schools with enrollment numbers of fewer than 700 located in Westchester, Rockland and Putnam
Briarcliff
Section 1 titles: Boys lacrosse
Regional titles: Boys lacrosse
State titles: None
The case for the Bears: While Briarcliff didn't have as much state-wide success as other finalists, the programs consistently contended for sectional titles. The dominant boys lacrosse team was the headliner, reaching the state final four. The school also had a hand in a combined Section 1 gymnastics title, and also saw its boys basketball, girls volleyball and girls soccer teams all finish as a runner-up.
Bronxville
Section 1 titles: Girls soccer, girls cross-country, girls indoor track, boys basketball, girls outdoor track and field, girls lacrosse
Regional titles: Girls soccer, girls lacrosse
State titles: Girls soccer, girls lacrosse
The case for the Broncos: The girls programs dominated the competition in all seasons for Bronxville, but not just in running, where the Broncos are traditionally strong. The girls soccer and girls lacrosse teams won states, including the first championship ever for the latter, which has been close in recent seasons. The boys basketball team also ended a 40-year drought by winning its first Section 1 title since 1982.
Hamilton
Section 1 titles: Boys soccer, boys basketball
Regional titles: Boys soccer
State titles: Boys soccer
The case for the Raiders: The boys soccer and boys basketball teams were both league and sectional champs. The boys basketball team, which was rolling when the COVID-19 pandemic brought a premature halt to its state-playoffs run, returned to the regional final. The boys soccer team elevated even higher, winning the first state crown in program history.
Pelham
Section 1 titles: Boys ice hockey, boys lacrosse
Regional titles: Boys ice hockey
State titles: Boys ice hockey
The case for the Pelicans: It's a pretty simple one. The school produced a pair of Section 1 champs in hockey and lacrosse, but it was the hockey team's state championship run that was the capper. The Pelicans sent out long-time coach Ed Witz by joining Suffern, the Division I champ, as a state champion. They handed the Mounties their only loss and also ended Skaneateles' 65-game winning streak.
Private School of the Year
Catholic and private schools located in Westchester, Rockland and Putnam
Iona Prep
League titles: Football, baseball, boys lacrosse (intersectional), boys volleyball, wrestling (dual meet)
League runner-up finishes: Ice hockey, boys golf
State titles: Football, boys lacrosse
The case for the Gaels: The football program won its first city championship in 13 years and went on to win a state title and finish as the No. 1-ranked team in New York. The boys lacrosse, baseball and volleyball teams were also city champs, and the boys lacrosse program went on to a state crown. The dual-meet champion wrestling team sent four competitors to states and the boys outdoors track and field team won a county championship.
Kennedy Catholic
League titles: Boys lacrosse, girls lacrosse, girls volleyball
League runner-up finishes: None
State titles: None
The case for the Gaels: Kennedy saw its boys and girls lacrosse teams win CHSAA league titles and the boys win a Class A intersectional crown. The baseball and softball teams were regular-season division champs as well.
Stepinac
League titles: Boys basketball (Archdiocesan), boys lacrosse (Archdiocesan)
League runner-up: Boys basketball (intersectional)
State titles: None
The case for the Crusaders: The boys lacrosse team achieved a program first, beating eventual city and state champ Iona Prep for the CHSAA New York Archdiocesan crown. The basketball team reached similar heights, upending eventual city and state champ Cardinal Hayes for the Archdiocesan title (its third in five seasons) before losing the rematch in the city championship game. The school also produced three individual track and one individual wrestling CHSAA champs.
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: 2022 Whelan All-Sports Awards: See finalists, vote in reader polls
