Sports
Newburgh’s Michael Chambliss, Jr., runs around the end as he holds off Valley Central’s Ladanein Morrison during Friday’s Class AA football game at Valley Central High School in Montgomery.

Goldbacks end slide with blowout at VC

The Newburgh Free Academy Goldbacks needed this. They led by 21 points at halftime, exploded for 27 more in the third quarter, blowing the Valley Central Vikings off their own field in a …

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Newburgh’s Nick Thomaz and Washingtonville’s Nicholas Novoa battle for the ball during Saturday’s non-league boys’ soccer game at Academy Field on Newburgh Free Academy’s Main Campus.
Matt Iorlano has been the coach of the Newburgh Free Academy boys’ soccer team for nearly three decades. He doesn’t believe any of his teams had ever given up a goal 19 seconds into the …
Pine Bush’s Audra Meberg plays the ball as Newburgh’s Addisyn Marrero defends during Friday’s OCIAA Division I girls’ soccer game at Alumni Field at Pine Bush High School.
Strike first, and then hold. That may not have been the Pine Bush Bushmen’s game plan heading into the game, but that’s how it happened. Katie Cragan scored the game’s …
OCIAA Division I girls’ cross country meet on Sept. 24 at Pine Bush Elementary School.
Devin Batelic won the boys’ race and Mary Jane Politi won the girls’ race as the Newburgh Free Academy Goldbacks swept the Pine Bush Bushmen in an Orange County Interscholastic Athletic …
Newburgh’s Piero Altamirano plays the ball as Middletown’s Jesus Godinez (7) and Daniel Norales defend during Wednesday’s OCIAA Division I boys’ soccer game Academy Field on Newburgh Free Academy’s Main Campus.
The Newburgh Free Academy Goldbacks had their first-half opportunities but were unable to convert. They took that frustration into halftime. They broke through the ice, scoring two goals in as …

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Newburgh goalkeeper Jocelyn Velasquez dives after the ball during Friday’s OCIAA Division I girls’ soccer game at Newburgh Free Academy’s North Campus.
By Mike Zummo Three games into the season, the Newburgh Free Academy Goldbacks are searching for their first victory. They’ve been close, haven’t lost them all, but haven’t won …
The Newburgh Free Academy Goldbacks honored the area’s youth football and cheerleading squads at their home opener on Friday. The teams were welcomed onto the field prior to kickoff, and, in turn, got to greet the bigger Goldbacks when they took the field.
Newburgh’s Bruce Montgomery takes a hand off from Quarterback Jaiseon Barnwell in the first quarter of Friday’s game against Minisink Valley.
Jaiseon Barnwell completed 10 passes for 206 yards and four touchdowns as the Newburgh Free Academy Goldbacks sailed to a 26-14 win over the Minisink Valley Warriors on Friday at Academy Field. …
Newburgh’s Mary Jane Politi and Newburgh’s Kiernan Judson run toward the finish line at a non-league cross-country meet on October 17, 2023, at Chadwick Lake Park in Newburgh.
The Newburgh Free Academy boys’ cross country team will return their two top runners from last season and two state qualifiers. The Goldbacks will weather the loss of runner Jadin …

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Jason Szeli [in red] with members of his summer camp staff helped out at Community Day this past summer.
At the age of 13, Jason Szeli knew he wanted to be the Recreation Director for the Town of Newburgh. After 39 years in the making and 18 years of service and dedication to the town, Szeli was …
Friday’s non-league football game at Arlington High School in Lagrangeville.
The Newburgh Free Academy Goldbacks came out and made a statement. The defense was stifling, and the offense ran all over the Arlington Admirals in route to a 35-0 non-league football win on …
Newburgh’s Elle Gerbes, center,stands on the podium after winning the 50-yard freestyle at the Section 9 girls’ swimming championships on Nov. 4, 2023, at Valley Central High School.
Newburgh Free Academy has a long swimming tradition, and Elle Gerbes is getting lonely as the only Goldback swimmer at the New York state championship meet. She’s gone each of the last two …

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Newburgh’s McKayla Rafferty hits the ball over the net as teammates Megan Evans and Sofia Mucci look on during an OCIAA Division I volleyball match on Oct. 6, 2023, at Newburgh Free Academy’s Main Campus.
It’s been a struggle for the Newburgh Free Academy volleyball team. But things have been slowly improving over the past several seasons, as the Goldbacks are coming off a season that saw …
Newburgh’s Cora Kerin plays the ball during a girls’ tennis match last season.
Viviene Bucci, as an eighth grader, was the Newburgh Free Academy girls’ tennis team’s top finisher last year, as she reached the quarterfinals of last year’s Section 9 tournament. …
Newburgh’s Justin Saravia plays the ball down the field as Middletown’s Luis Medina defends during an OCIAA Division I boys’ soccer game on Oct. 13, 2023, at Academy Field in Newburgh.
Graduation has hit the Newburgh Free Academy boys’ and girls’ soccer team’s hard after the 2023 season, and both will head into the 2024 season with young rosters. The …

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Newburgh’s Bruce Montgomery runs the football as Monroe-Woodbury’s Tyler Daniel (3) and Kamal Salaudeen attempt to bring him down during a Class AA football game on Oct. 28, 2023, at Monroe-Woodbury High School in Central Valley.
The 2023 football season didn’t end the way the Newburgh Free Academy Goldbacks wanted. They saw their streak of two consecutive Section 9 Class AA championships end despite posting an 8-2 …
The Newburgh Goldbacks run the ball during Saturday’s Orange County Youth Football League Division 2 scrimmage at Lasser Park in Salisbury Mills.
Orange County Youth Football League teams have been practicing on a near nightly basis since Aug. 1, with area training camps culminating in last weekend’s 2024 Scrimmage Weekend. The …
The Hudson Valley Storm pose with the Greater Hudson Valley Softball League 12U Division 4 championship banner on Aug. 5 at Wallkill area Little League.
Amanda Ceely was nervous before the Hudson Valley Red Storm took the field for the Greater Hudson Valley Softball League 12U Division 4 championship softball game on August 5 at Wallkill Area Little …

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