We created our lohud Tom Whelan All-Sports Awards in 2018 to honor a longtime champion of scholastic athletics and highlight a select list of winners from the previous school year.
Tommy was an old-school character whose ability to share compelling stories made him welcome on any sideline or any barstool. He could recite names and numbers of the countless athletes he chronicled across multiple generations. Whelan’s engaging personality made everyone feel important.
This award prioritizes success at the varsity level across multiple sports. Championships are the best reflection of a team’s ability and ambition.
So with a nod to the example our late colleague set back in the day, here are the winners of the ninth annual Tom Whelan All-Sports Awards, selected by the lohud sports team:
Athlete(s) of the year
The level of unprecedented success Carson Miller and Henry Shoemaker enjoyed this season at Rye demands a creative response. How many other childhood friends and longtime teammates have celebrated three Section 1 championships, three regional titles and two state championships over the course of a school year?
Miller and Shoemaker were the cornerstone of a Garnets football juggernaut that went 14-0, beating Somers for the Section 1 Class A championship and Brighton for the NYSPHSAA title. Miller threw for 3,545 yards and 38 touchdowns, establishing Section 1 single-season records in both categories. He also ran for 963 yards and 12 touchdowns. Shoemaker had 75 receptions for 1,797 yards and 22 touchdowns.
Shoemaker was also the headliner of a Rye basketball team that scripted a string of dramatic comebacks and knocked off Clarkstown North to win the Section 1 Class AA title. He averaged 14.4 points and 10.6 rebounds while Miller contributed 13.8 points and endless defensive energy. The Garnets won a regional title and got to Binghamton for the NYSPHSAA final four before falling to Amsterdam.
Miller and Shoemaker’s last run ended with a win over Somers in the Section 1 Class C lacrosse championship and then a win over Jamesville DeWitt in the NYSPHSAA title game. Shoemaker, who is heading to Harvard to play football, finished with 36 goals and 47 assists while Miller, who also going to Harvard to play lacrosse, delivered 41 goals and 32 assists.
Past winners
2018: Katelyn Tuohy, North Rockland
2019: Katelyn Tuohy, North Rockland
2020: Katelyn Tuohy, North Rockland
2021: Clevmer Lubin, Suffern
2022: Daniel D’Ippolito, Somers
2023: Daniel Picart, Pleasantville
2024: Boogie Fland, Stepinac
2025: Miguel Iglesias, Somers
Readers choice
Results of the Athlete of the Year readers poll
Julia Scott, Albertus Magnus, 55.5%
Will Plunkett, Mamaroneck, 24.33%
Eve Girardi, Tappan Zee, 11.86%
Julian Guzman, Iona Prep, 2.53%
Brayden Richardson, Sleepy Hollow, 1.57%
Carson Miller, Rye, 1.35%
Sloan Wasserman, John Jay-Cross River, 1.15%
Henry Shoemaker, Rye, 1.01%
Jasiah Jervis, Stepinac, .69%
Large School of the Year: Mamaroneck
Includes public schools with enrollment numbers of 700 or greater located in Westchester, Rockland and Putnam counties.
The Tigers have known success in past years, but never at this level. Mamaroneck captured the school’s first Section 1 football championship with a 9-0 win over John Jay-East Fishkill. The field hockey team won another sectional title, beating Clarkstown 4-0, and went on to play for the NYSPHSAA Class A title, falling to Windsor. The boys basketball team blew past Mount Vernon to capture the school’s first-ever sectional title. The Tigers advanced to a NYSPHSAA Class AA semifinal before losing to CBA-Albany. Mamaroneck also captured Section 1 championships in boys swimming and girls skiing over the winter. In the spring, the boys lacrosse team thumped Scarsdale in the Section 1 Class A title game and made the NYSPHSAA final four before falling to Massapequa. The flag football team in its inaugural season beat Scarsdale 13-7 in the Section 1 Division I championship game and the baseball team won the Section 1 Class AAA title with a 2-0 win over Ketcham.
Finalists: Mamaroneck, North Rockland, Suffern, Yorktown.
Past winners
2018: North Rockland
2019: John Jay-Cross River
2020: Rye
2021: Suffern
2022: Somers
2023: Scarsdale
2024: Scarsdale
2025: North Rockland
Small School of the Year: Rye
Includes public schools with enrollment numbers of fewer than 699 located in Westchester, Rockland and Putnam counties.
The dollars set aside for travel in the school’s athletic budget were gone in a hurry. The Garnets went 14-0 in football, dispatched Somers 40-17 in the Section 1 Class A championship and celebrated a NYSPHSAA title following a 28-14 win in the JMA Wireless Dome. The girls soccer team grabbed the Section 1 Class A championship with a 2-0 win over Pleasantville and won a NYSPHSAA title, beating Aquinas Institute 4-0. The boys soccer team took down Pleasantville by a 5-0 margin to win the Section 1 Class A championship and played for the NYSPHSAA title, falling to East Aurora. The girls volleyball team took down Tappan Zee 3-1 in the Section 1 Class A championship. The ice hockey team was upset in the Section 1 Division II championship, but got the at-large bid to states and got revenge on Byram Hills in the NYSPHSAA title game, winning 5-1. The boys basketball team survived Clarkstown North in the Section 1 Class AA championship and made the state final four before falling to Amsterdam. The boys lacrosse team highlighted a productive spring, besting Somers 13-9 in the Section 1 Class C championship and beating Jamesville DeWitt 15-9 in the NYSPHSAA title game. The girls lacrosse team celebrated a 15-9 win over Pelham in the Section 1 Class C championship and made the state final four before losing to Sayville. The baseball team beat Mahopac 5-0 to claim the Section 1 Class AA championship and the boys golf team sent three players to states and won the Section 1 team championship.
Finalists: Rye, Bronxville, Tuckahoe, North Salem.
Past winners
2018: Pleasantville
2019: Ardsley
2020: Valhalla
2021: Bronxville
2022: Bronxville
2023: Bronxville
2024: Rye
2025: Tuckahoe
Private School of the Year: Iona Prep
Catholic and private schools located in Westchester, Rockland and Putnam counties were considered.
There is no shortage of talent on this campus, which graduted 36 student-athletes with college commitments. The Gaels went back to back in football, winning the CHSAA AAA championship with a 42-20 win over Monsignor Farrell, to avenge their only loss of the regular season. Iona Prep went on to beat St. Francis to repeat in the state Catholic school title game. The Gaels played for a CHSHL title in ice hockey, falling to Chaminade and the wrestling team won the Westchester County championship. The boys lacrosse team dispatched Stepinac and celebrated a NYCHSAA AA championship repeat, took down Kellenberg to win the CHSAA Downstate title and thumped St. Joseph’s Collegiate to go back to back as state Catholic school champions. The Gaels basetball team claimed the archdiocesan championship and capped a CHSAA ‘City’ AA title run with a 12-7 win over Stepinac. The outdoor track and field team also claimed the Westchester County title.
Finalists: Iona Prep, Ursuline, Albertus Magnus and Stepinac.
Past winners
2018: Stepinac
2019: Stepinac
2020: Iona Prep
2021: Iona Prep
2022: Iona Prep
2023: Iona Prep
2024: Stepinac
2025: Iona Prep
Sportsmanship Award: Sleepy Hollow football
Presented to a school, team or athlete that plays the game the right way on and off the field.
Interscholastic athletics have the ability to engage an entire community and when Sleepy Hollow began its march toward its first-ever Section 1 football championship last fall, the bleachers filled up in a hurry. When the Horsemen knocked off Westlake 27-14 in the Class C title game, the stands were full of alumni who squeezed into old jerseys and jackets to witness the historic moment. Sleepy Hollow was once a traditional football power, but there have been some humbling seasons in recent years. The revitalized Horsemen faithful traveled en masse to watch players like Brayden Richardson, Gilbert Onwe, Abel Perez Rosario, Ben Meyer, Thaddeus Kromelis, Jeremiah Bowen and Andre Estevez take on the rest of the state. Sleepy Hollow kept the community fully engaged, advancing to the NYSPHSAA title game in Syracuse where the Horsemen fell to Monroe.
Past winners
2018: Keio
2019: Mount Vernon
2020: Yonkers
2021: Darrin and Daniel Santos, Haldane
2022: Sound Shore athletes who helped clean up after Hurricane Ida
2023: Luke Green, Pelham
2024: Able Athletics student/athlete volunteers
2025: Oban Rader, Lakeland
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Celebrating Whelan All-Sports Award winners and athlete of the year
Reporting by Mike Dougherty, Rockland/Westchester Journal News / Rockland/Westchester Journal News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Mike Dougherty, Rockland/Westchester Journal News | USA TODAY Network
