Dunmore senior Allie Dempsey is well versed and key cog in team’s success

Posted on June 5, 2024 by The Dunmorean

By Steve Svetovich

Dunmore senior second baseman Allie Dempsey was a steady performer all season for the Lady Bucks.

The scrappy second baseman was the glue to a strong infield that helped lead Dunmore to a 12-9 record despite a loss to Holy Cross in the district semifinal contest.

Daughter of Jack and Jenny Dempsey, Allie hit .304, with 21 hits, six doubles, 12 runs and 14 RBIs for the Lady Bucks this season. She also performed consistently defensively at second base and was a leader on the team.

Well-versed, Allie has been a four-year member of the Dunmore softball team. She was also a four-year member of Dunmore’s basketball and volleyball teams. She was a varsity cheerleading captain, president of the TACT Club, vice president of the National Honor Society, editor in chief of the school yearbook and member of the French Club.

Allie played guard on the basketball team and was a setter on the volleyball team.

Well-spoken and articulate, she has a 3.8 academic average. Her best subjects are English and History.

Dunmore senior softball player Allie Dempsey poses with her parents, Jack and Jenny Dempsey.

The senior student-athlete will study criminology at Penn State next year. She has hopes of attending law school and becoming a youth advocate attorney in the future.

Allie was a member of the Dunmore Lady Bucks basketball state championship team last season.

“That was just crazy,” she said. “It was a perfect season.

“It was an example of how great a community Dunmore is. It was just so intense. We had the whole community behind us. It was so special to celebrate with the entire community when we got home.”

Allie had a hit in Dunmore’s 8-2 win over Montrose, on Monday, May 20, in the District 2 Class 2A opener. However, Dunmore lost to Holy Cross, 11-0, on Wednesday, May 22, in the District 2 Class 2A semifinal. Ava Schmidt of Holy Cross pitched five no-hit innings against Dunmore.

Sophomore Rachel Walsh was the winning pitcher in her complete game win over Montrose. Senior catcher Tristan Canavan homered and drove in two runs for Dunmore.

“Rachel Walsh has been a big factor to our success this year,” said Allie. “She has come a long way since her freshman year when she also made a big impact. And Tristan Canavan had such a huge year hitting and catching for us.

“This team really came along well. We’ve been playing together for a long time. We were very young when starting out together. That’s why we’ve had so much success.”

Multi-talented and hard-working, Allie credits her junior high softball coaches for her development. “Colleen Ross and her husband Paul, and assistant coach Jerry Dempsey taught me so much. They taught me all the little things about the game. All of that helped me so much on the varsity level. They made me better.”

Allie Dempsey is shown with fellow seniors, standing from left: Tristan Canavan, Allie, Molly Gatto, and Sophia Summa.

Allie said her parents are strong supporters. “They were both athletes, so they taught me how playing sports teaches you so many good qualities. They taught me about sports and the community. You learn things that go beyond sports. They also taught me it is very important to focus on education, the classroom, and activities.”

The energetic senior said Dunmore softball coach Ryan Ferguson taught her many good qualities.

“He taught me to be a good teammate and lead others by example. He taught me to take a step back and regroup when things get bad.”

Allie enjoys listening to music in her spare time and would like to see Taylor Swift and Olivia Rodrigo in concert.

As she approaches graduation, Allie spoke fondly of her student-athlete experiences at Dunmore.

“It’s been a great experience,” she said. “The way I was able to maximize the high school experience was to play all different roles in three different sports. I was a bigger factor in some roles and a smaller factor in others, but I was a part of it all.

“It all helped me become a leader. I made strong friendships that will last my entire life.

“Dunmore is just such a great community. The community always rallies around us. What a great high school experience this has been.”

Athlete of the Month: Rachel Walsh

Posted on May 1, 2024 by The Dunmorean

***Rachel Walsh of the Lady Bucks softball team is shown with her homerun and 200 strikeout balls. Rachel is 6-0 with a 1.69 ERA and 56 strikeouts. She is also batting .600 and 16 RBIS***
***and has 200 career strikeouts as a freshman.***

By Steve Svetovich

Dunmore sophomore pitcher Rachel Walsh is not only excelling this season for the Lady Bucks on the mound, but also at the plate.

Daughter of Kevin and Michele Walsh, Rachel has a 7-2 record on the mound and sparkling 1.75 ERA at press time..

Last month she recorded her 200th career strikeout against Riverside. She has 236 career strikeouts at press time.

A total of 144 of those strikeouts came in her freshman year when she won nine games and had a 3.59 ERA.

The sophomore standout batted .405 with three homers last season. She also plays first base.

Rachel at press time is batting .520, with a .625 on base percentage, one homer, five doubles, 13 hits, 13 runs scored, 17 RBIs and an .840 slugging percentage.

The highly-talented sophomore attributes her strong improvement on the mound this season to a lot of hard work. “I really put a lot of work into my pitching in the fall and winter months,” she said. “I did my job as a freshman, but knew there was room for improvement. I set some goals to get better. The hard work is paying off for me.”

She talked about what it takes to excel on the mound. “You need to put in long hours and put the time and effort in. You need motivation and determination to be one of the best.”

Rachel said veteran Dunmore softball coach Ryan Ferguson taught her a lot. “He always tells me to never get down on myself. Everything will be okay in the end. One bad game won’t hurt you. You can bounce back.”

Well-versed and multi-talented, Rachel is also a two-year member of the Dunmore Lady Bucks basketball team where she was part of a state championship as a freshman. She is also a member of the bowling club, French Club and Art Club.

Rachel has an impressive 4.0 academic average. Her favorite subject is math.

The Dunmore softball team finished 9-12 last season, but this year is 7-2 at press time.

Rachel talked about the team’s improvement. “We all stay positive. Everyone has high hopes. We practice longer and harder. We’ve become more consistent with our hitting and it is showing. We also have two freshmen on the team, Emily McGowan and Paige Ancherani, who are contributing a lot to our success. Both are great outfielders and can really hit. Emily also plays first base.”

Well-spoken and enthusiastic, Rachel said she would like to play softball and study engineering in college. She would like to become an architectural or mechanical engineer and is considering Penn State among others.

The sophomore student-athlete enjoys listening to music in her spare time. She would like to see country singer Morgan Wallen in concert.

Determined and focused, Rachel said she is making the most of her experience at Dunmore.

“I love Dunmore,” she said. “It’s a small and close-knit town. Everyone is so supportive both in the town and at school. I am very fortunate to grow up in a small town. I love playing for the Dunmore Lady Bucks softball team. We have a really good team. I love our coaching staff and teammates.

“We had some tough times in my freshman year, but our softball team is really improved now. We hope it continues and are working hard as a group so that it does. We expect great years ahead.”

Rachel also praised her parents. “They tell me I can do anything I set my mind to. And no matter what, they will always be by my side. I have their never ending support.”

Athlete of the Month: Ciera Toomey

Posted on April 5, 2023 by The Dunmorean

By Steve Svetovich

It was a long road back, but well worth it.

Dunmore senior standout center Ciera Toomey can say that for the rest of her life.

Daughter of Patrick and Carrie Toomey, Ciera came back from a right knee ACL and meniscus tear suffered last season to lead the Dunmore Lady Bucks into the state playoffs culminating with the team’s first PIAA Class 3A title win, 42-30, over River Valley, Thursday, March 23, at the Giant Center in Hershey.

The 6-4 stalwart led the Lady Bucks with 14 points, five steals and career high 21 rebounds in the state title win.

It was even more gratifying not only to come back after months of rehabilitation from the right knee ACL and meniscus tear, but to be a part of the Lady Bucks first ever state title with her mom, Carrie Bowen Toomey, as her coach.

This was her mom’s first year as the Lady Bucks basketball coach after serving as an assistant for several years under Ben O’Brien who left to lead the University of Scranton Lady Royals. Her mom was an All-State basketball player for Dunmore and former Player of the Year. Ciera’s mom was also a basketball standout at Franklin and Marshall College. Ciera’s older sister Victoria was an all-state basketball player at Dunmore.

“Winning the state title felt so much better because I did it with my mom,” Ciera said. “Winning the title felt so good. My mom instilled a lot of confidence in us. Now she can breath a sigh of relief. We finally won it all.

“Winning the state title was surreal. I was in disbelief when the final buzzer sounded.

“It’s about time we did this. We made history. We were all really excited. Everyone had a part of it. It was just so exciting. We worked so hard for this and it was all worth it.”

Teammates Sophia Talutto and Tristan Canavan added 10 points each in the state title win.

Ciera scored 13 points in Dunmore’s 43-37 win over Lancaster Catholic in the PIAA Clas 3A semifinal win, Monday, March 20, at Martz Hall, Pottsville.

A dominant shot blocker, Ciera scored 16 points in Dunmore’s 58-19 PIAA Class 3A quarterfinal route over Lake Lehman. She scored 14 points in the second round state playoff win, 52-34, over Imhotop Charter School. Dunmore’s first round state playoff win came over Bloomsburg, 64-33.

Ciera helped lead the Lady Bucks to a fifth district title in the past six years, 50-30, over Holy Redeemer, Saturday, March 4, at Mohegan Sun Arena, Wilkes Barre. Ciera scored 11 points and had 10 rebounds in the district title win. Sophia Talutto led Dunmore with 21 points. Tristan Canavan had 10 rebounds and Jackie Brown scored seven clutch points off the bench.

“We had so many contributions from a lot of different players this year,” Ciera said. “Sophia Talutto is one of my best friends. She really stepped up her game and became a leader on this team. I was so happy for her success.

“Cadie Lewis played great defense and usually guarded the opposition’s best offensive threat. She played great defense. She doesn’t get enough credit for what she does. She made some big shots too.

“Tristan Canavan was very good for us all year. She played tough on both ends of the court. She hustled and gave us strong defense and scoring.

“Amanda Dempsey played a key role as a freshman both off the bench and starting. Jackie Brown became a key contributor as a freshman.

“All of my teammates really stepped it up a notch when I was out. They all had a big part in this.”

The hard-working, talented senior is also a key member of the golf team at Dunmore. She is a member of TACT, SADD, the Service Club and Art Club at Dunmore.

Well-spoken and articulate, Ciera has an impressive 3.86 grade point average at Dunmore. She was named Times-Tribune athlete of the week after the state title win.

Ciera is a member of ESPN HoopGurlz 2023 Class, ranked No. 4 nationally (No. 1 ranked Post). She was PIAA first-team basketball All-State in her sophomore and junior years and third-team All-State as a freshman.

She was named All-Regional for basketball in her sophomore and junior years.,

She was named to the Lackawanna All-League basketball teams in her first three seasons. She was the Lynett Tournament MVP in 2021.

She was on the Jersey Mike’s Naismith Award Watch List for the past three years. She was Hoop Group Summer AAU MVP in 2021 and won a League Team Title.

The strong-minded scholar/athlete said it was not easy coming back from her injury, but she persisted to get ready for the playoffs. “It took a lot of time to get back, but I slowly worked my way back on the court and gained more and more confidence. I felt better and better with each game. We didn’t want to be a runner-up this year. We wanted to win it all. I wanted to get back on the court to be a part of this team winning a state title.”

Ciera said her favorite academic subject is psychology. She will study environmental science at the University of North Carolina where she will play basketball on a scholarship.

“I am really looking forward to it,” she said. “It’s going to be a different experience. But I am ready to shift my focus on it. I am already in touch with all of my coaches and future teammates there. I can’t wait to play basketball there.”

Ciera said she will never forget her years at Dunmore and the state championship she will always cherish. “The state championship was so exciting. There is no better way to go out. This town is so special. Dunmore will always have a special place in my heart. I will be going on to the next chapter, but there is no better way to finish high school. Dunmore has been a tremendous, special experience for me.”