Several female athletes across Section 4 have dominated in their respective sports, creating headlines and outshining their competition this season. The question posed: What characteristics make a standout athlete?
These fan-picked athletes have shown up and shown out in their respective sports this year; some athletes creating new legacies, other athletes stepping up to lead a team, and a handful of newcomers who changed the perception of the “underclassman” label.
Here are this year’s “Athlete(s) of the Season” in Section 4 girls’ basketball, wrestling, bowling and track:
Click below to see all nominees and their accomplishments.
All Nominees and Descriptions
Girls Wrestling
This season’s nominees: Ellisa Bly (Horseheads), Teagan McGuinness (Union-Endicott), Isabella Phelps (Sidney), Delaney Dixon (Windsor)
The fan-picked 2026 “Athlete of the Season” in Section 4 girls’ wrestling is Union-Endicott’s Teagan McGuinness.
McGuinness’ accomplishments this season: McGuinness captured the girls’ wrestling individual state championship title at 185 and ended her senior season with an unbeaten record of 36-0 to become the first women’s state champion in Union-Endicott history. The senior also captured another individual title at the Section 4 wrestling championships.
Girls Basketball
This season’s nominees: Maggie Warpus (Chenango Forks), Harper Eagan (Maine-Endwell), Ava Kariam (Susquehanna Valley), Nayla Miley (Sidney)
The fan-picked 2026 “Athlete of the Season” in Section 4 girls’ basketball is Susquehanna Valley’s Ava Kariam.
Kariam’s accomplishments this season: Kariam scored 15 points against state-ranked Chenango Forks to claim the STAC championship title this season, claiming a spot on BCANY’s all-state first team and the STAC’s Central/East all-conference team as a freshman.
Girls Indoor Track & Field
This season’s nominees: Eva DiNunzio-Welch (Binghamton), Cella McLaughlin (Corning), Grace Walley (Walton), Tsadia Bercuvitz (Ithaca)
More: High school sports results for the 2025-26 school year
The fan-picked 2026 “Athlete of the Season” in Section 4 girls’ indoor track and field is Binghamton’s Eva DiNunzio-Welch.
DiNunzio-Welch’s accomplishments this season: DiNunzio-Welch ranked among the top 10 female track athletes in Section 4. The senior took first place in the 800-meter event (2:23.39) at the Puma New York International Showcase, first in the 600-meter event (1:40.07) at the Section 4 Class Championships, and captured the state title in the 1000-meter event with a time of 3:03.64.
Girls Bowling
This season’s nominees: Haley Peters (Binghamton), Madison Smith (Elmira), Aubriana Tyler (Windsor), Kylie Downing (Corning)
The fan-picked 2026 “Athlete of the Season” in Section 4 girls’ bowling is Windsor’s Aubriana Tyler.
Tyler’s accomplishments this season: Tyler’s 1,236-pin finish captured the lead for Windsor in the Section 4 Division 2 team championships, resulting in the Black Knights’ second-place team score. A first-place finish from Tyler in the high series (596), high games (257), and overall finish (1,586) fortified Windsor’s number one overall score (6688) in Division 2 at the Section 4 state qualifier tournament.
This article originally appeared on Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin: Here are the 2025-26 Athletes of the Season for girls’ winter sports
Reporting by Aniya Sumner, Binghamton Press & Sun Bulletin / Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
