by Phil Blackwell

sports editor

That Cazenovia High School’s athletic teams accomplish plenty on the field is a long-established and well-known fact, but what they have done in the classroom earned the school its highest possible collective honor.

The New York State Public High School Athletic Association announced last week that Cazenovia was one of 30 chosen for the association’s annual “School of Distinction” award for the 2017-18 school year.

In order to earn this, each of Cazenovia’s 24 varsity teams had to receive NYSPHSAA Scholar-Athlete team awards during the school year. That means 75 percent of the roster of a team must maintain a grade average of 90 or higher.

To put this accomplishment in perspective, only two other Section III schools were “School of Distinction” choices in 2017-18, neither of them public as Manlius-Pebble Hill, with 15 varsity teams, and Living Word Academy, with four varsity teams, were honored.

The 30 schools chosen in 2017-18 was a steep increase from the 19 chosen in 2016-17, with 111 other schools receiving “School of Excellence” citations having 75 percent of their teams get NYSPHSAA Scholar-Athlete designations.

“The increase in the number of schools receiving both awards shows what fantastic student-athletes we have here in New York State,” said NYPHSAA executive director Robert Zayas. “This is evidence that schools, administration, coaches and student-athletes focus on excellence in the classroom as well as the playing fields.”