Woodsmen’s Jack & Jill Team Wins 2026 Spring Meet Championship
Brewerton, NY ~ The Paul Smith's College Woodsmen's Team turned in a championship-caliber performance this past weekend at the Collegiate Timbersports 2026 Spring Meet hosted by SUNY Environmental Science and Forestry (ESF) at Oneida Shores County Park on the shores of Oneida Lake.
Competing against top collegiate logging sports teams from across the Northeast, the Bobcats claimed the Jack & Jill Division championship trophy, while also earning runner-up honors in the Men's Division and a third-place finish in the Women's Division. Paul Smith's College, SUNY ESF, SUNY Alfred, Finger Lake Community College, University of New Hampshire, University of Vermont, Dartmouth College, University of Connecticut, SUNY Cobleskill, Colby College, and SUNY Morrisville were represented by 37 different six-person teams competing in five different divisions.
"It was a fine weekend of woodsmen's competition," said Keith Braun, PSC's Woodsmen's head coach. "We saw some of the best performances of the year by the PSC teams, especially in the chopping events. Their determination and grit shined as they pushed through some cold and rainy weather – I guess you develop that when you practice on frozen wood all winter long in the Adirondacks!"
Jack & Jill Division Champions
Paul Smith's College dominated the co-ed Jack & Jill competition with victories in:
- Standing Block Chop – Seniors McKenna Verhagen and Natan Sanchez with a time of 43.16 seconds.
- Team Crosscut, Team Pulp Toss and Team Log Roll – Seniors Allison Lang, Natan Sanchez, McKenna Verhagen, Ben Winter & Juniors William Walsh, Emily Passno.
- Singles Canoe Relay - Seniors McKenna Verhagen and Natan Sanchez with a time of two minutes and 19 seconds.
The Bobcat Jack & Jill team finished the weekend with 1701 points, a commanding 200 points ahead of the second-place finisher. The Jack & Jill division was the largest of the weekend with ten teams representing six difference colleges. This team also finishes the 2025-2026 competition season undefeated with wins at each of the seven competitions they entered.
"I am proud of this team for everything they have accomplished this year. Everyone put their all into every meet which led to an undefeated season. Holding that trophy at the end of the weekend was an amazing feeling for us all!" said senior Allison Lang, the Jack & Jill team captain.
Men's Division
Paul Smith's men's teams posted standout event wins in:
- Single Buck – Junior Grady Ball with a time of 13.2
- Underhand Chop – Senior Kyle Joray, Junior Caleb Steves & Junior Parker Bogardus with a time of 44.42 seconds. Nearly half the time of second place finishers.
- Standing Block Chop – Juniors Caleb Steves & Parker Bogardus with a time of 14.46 seconds. The fastest known time for PSC choppers on 8x8 White Pine.
- Axe Throw – Senior Donovan Richardson with 21 points.
- Stock Saw – Sophomore Ethan Sherman with a time of 6.63 seconds.
- Team Crosscut and Team Log Roll – Seniors Kyle Joray, Donovan Richardson, Chris Burnett & Juniors Parker Bogardus, Caleb Steves, Sam Latimore.
PSC's Men's 1 team narrowly missed the overall title while delivering one of the strongest performances of the day. They finished the day with 1693 points, just 17 points shy of the first-place team, SUNY ESF. PSC's Men's 2 team finished the day in fifth place, out of nine teams in the division, with 1409 points.
Women's Division Third Place
Paul Smith's women's team earned event victories in:
- Cookie Stack – Sophomore Alex Martin with 15 cookies.
- Standing Block Chop – Juniors Taylor Sirois and Morgan Cheney with a time of 42.18 seconds.
The PSC Women's Team finished the weekend in third place with 1526 points behind first place SUNY ESF and second Place Finger Lake's Community College – less than 150 points separated the top three teams.
Alumni Excellence
Six Paul Smith's College alumni competed against alumni from SUNY ESF and Finger Lake Community College.
Samantha Graves '17, Billy Adams '16, Mark Bouquin '12, Curt Karboski '09, Sydney Krompasky '24 and Emily Brown '18 dusted off their gear and dominated their division. They finished the weekend with 1624 points, nearly 100 points more than the second-place team.
"This was an awesome weekend for all of the PSC competitors; especially the Jack and Jill team," said Kate Syder, Woodsmen's assistant coach. "To win a Spring Meet Trophy and capture individual event wins across multiple divisions says everything about the tradition of the Paul Smith's woodsmen."
Held annually each spring, the Spring Meet is one of the Northeast's premier collegiate timbersports competitions, featuring chopping, sawing, climbing, throwing, and other events rooted in forestry tradition. This was SUNY ESF's first time hosting Spring Meet. The competition changes host schools every spring. PSC last hosted the event in 2024, next year Dartmouth College will host. This weekend's event was sanctioned by the Northeastern Intercollegiate Logging Sports Association (NEILA), of which Paul Smith's College is a founding member.
With another Spring Meet Trophy win, Paul Smith's College Woodsmen's Team once again reinforced its standing as one of the nation's elite collegiate woodsmen programs.
You can follow the woodsmen's team on Instagram at @psc_woodsmen or you can follow the general athletics account at @smitty_nation for scores, schedules, highlights, and more!
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At Paul Smith's College, it's about the experience. As the only four-year institution of higher education located in the Adirondack Park in upstate New York, Paul Smith's provides real-world, hands-on learning in fields such as business and hospitality, culinary management, forestry, environmental sciences, and natural resources. We can draw on industries and resources available in our backyard while preparing students for successful careers anywhere. Our community of resourceful, enterprisingg, supportive, and adventurous individuals collectively provides experiential education, student support in the classroom and beyond, and meaningful opportunities for our alumni. We pride ourselves on research and advocacy on issues that improve our planet and the lives of the people who inhabit it. Learn more at www.paulsmiths.edu.