byron-bergen

The calmness in Scott G. Martzloff’s voice assured me he was beginning to gear up for the challenges of his new position. On July 1, Dr. Martzloff will take over as the Superintendent of Schools of the Byron-Bergen Central School District. He will be succeeding Gregory Geer who is retiring after eight years on the job.

Martzloff’s voice raised with excitement as he spoke of the committment of the entire school administration. He knew this was the place for him when he first went to a Byron-Bergen basketball game and got to talk with staff, parents and those involved in the community. There is a sense that this is a real close-knit community, he said.

His visit to the area showed him the eagerness of the community members to help one another. After his visit he said, “I want to be a part of this.”

Martzloff has always been committed to his work. He earned Doctorate of Education at the University of Rochester, a Master of Science degree and Certificate of Advanced Study in Educational Leadership at SUNY Brockport, and a Special Education teaching certification at SUNY Geneseo. He published a book in 2007 titled: Transformational School Culture.

He knows the position is going to be a change from his last. For ten years, he was a school administrator in the Rochester City and the Rush-Henrietta Central school districts. Still, he feels he's ready to face all that comes with the title: Superintendent.

“It is a challenging position, but I feel I have prepared myself well to take on that challenge,” said Martzloff. He said the most rewarding part of his job is seeing students be successful. His number one priority as Superintendent is to listen, listen and listen.

“I plan to do a lot of listening. I want to have a lot of conversations with people in the community and hear their perceptions,” said Martzloff.

Enthusiasm took over his words when he spoke of the importance of community involvement.

“I am looking forward to being very active in the district, and working with all members of the community,” said Martzloff. He plans to set goals and see Byron-Bergen become a world class district. His wife, Kimberly, a school counselor at Rush-Henrietta Senior High School, and their three young children, 6-year-old Victoria, 4-year-old Elizabeth and 3-year-old Scott Jr., plan to relocate to the Byron-Bergen School District from their current location, Honeoye Falls.

Martzloff said that it's hard sometimes managing his time for work and family.

“Although I am very committed to my work, family comes first,” said Martzloff.  

He said he will spend more time talking with the current superintendent, Geer, when it is closer to July. Martzloff said he wants to be respectful to Geer, and allow him to continue to do his job in a positive manner.

From the Byron-Bergen Web site:

Mr. Ernie Haywood, President of the Byron-Bergen Board of Education, commented on the appointment saying, "After extensive input from the community and our staff, the Board of Education chose Dr. Martzloff because we believe his qualifications and experiences fit our District’s needs. His skills set is one that will continue the District’s efforts focused on providing each and every one of our students the best educational experience possible.”

 After losing games to Oakfield-Alabama, Pembroke and Attica, the Alexander football team has found the right equation to win in the Genesee Region League.

The Trojans play a physical style of football that involves pounding away with the ball on offense, are attempting to force turnovers on defense and - most importantly - making all the right moves on special teams.

Alexander won for the second consecutive week and are now 2-3 after beating Elba/Byron-Bergen 28-13 Saturday night in the first game ever played under the lights in Elba.

The Trojans spoiled Elba/Byron-Bergen's homecoming, but it didn't take away from the cool atmosphere of seeing a game in Elba played under lights, which did an excellent job of lighting the middle part of the field.

It almost wasn't spoiled as the two teams played a pretty close first half.

The two squads exchanged punts on their first possessions and a special teams mistake by Elba/Byron-Bergen on the team's second possession proved costly.

The snap sailed over the punters head and the Lancers picked it up and ran to their own 30-yard line.

Alexander had a couple of decent running plays before Jay Schaefer ran one in from six yards out. The extra point was missed.

Elba/Byron-Bergen's Zach Green then returned the ensuing kickoff 81 yards for a touchdown. Again, the kick failed and the score was tied at 6 after the first quarter.

Alexander coach Dave Radley wanted to make sure I mentioned kicker/punter Lucas Czechowski in my preview this week and for good reason - he came up big. 

His first big kick was a 22-yard field goal early in the second quarter that put the Trojans up 9-6.

Elba/Byron-Bergen missed a field goal later in the half and that was the score at intermission 

Alexander had a long drive to open the second half - aided by some costly Elba/B-B penalties - that led to another Schaefer touchdown, this time from two yards out. The kick made the score 16-6.

The Lancers scored on another big play as Green rumbled 61 yards for a TD. The extra point brought Elba/Byron-Bergen to within three points.

Alexander marched down the field, going 68 yards down to the Elba/B-B 1 with a long kickoff return and a key pass from Zach Burke to Czechowski. But the Trojans fumbled the ball away and the Lancers took over deep in their own territory near the end of the third quarter.

Green broke off a 15-yarder, but the drive stalled and the Lancers had to punt again.

For the second time in the game, the snap sailed over the punter's head. This time it went through the end zone for a safety.

Alexander got the ball back and was moved into field goal territory because of an Elba/B-B facemask call.

Czechowski hit the 22-yard kick to make the score 21-13.

Ryan Piechocki had a key sack and forced Elba/B-B into a passing situation where Jordan Leitten took advantage, intercepting a pass at the 20-yard line.

Mike Woodrow had a 4-yard run a few plays later to make it a two touchdown game.

Leitten capped off the victory with another interception in the closing seconds, allowing the Trojans to take a knee and run out the clock.

Elba/Byron-Bergen falls to 1-4 and the biggest crowd to attend a game in the town of Elba in years was treated to a cool homecoming experience. But the team will have to work on limiting penalties and making huge mistakes on special teams if it is going to beat Notre Dame or Bishop Walsh in the final two weeks of the season.

Alexander is now 2-3 and will wrap up its regular season with a home game against Barker next Saturday. The Trojans were the No. 4 seed in the Section 5 Class D playoffs before the win and should move up to No. 3 with Avon's loss to Le Roy last night combined with the victory.

History will be made in Elba on October 4.

The Elba/Byron-Bergen football team will be playing its homecoming game under the lights for the first time in the history of the program.

Elba has never had lights on its field and the Elba Sports Boosters will be bringing in temporary lights for the game against Alexander, allowing the Lancers to host a night game for the first time ever.

The Section 5 schedule still says the game has a 1:30 p.m. kickoff time, but it will actually be at 7 p.m.

 Penn State Volleyball is off to a 12-0 start this fall and Byron-Bergen graduate Alyssa D'Errico is having a great season.

The Nittany Lions are the defending NCAA Division I champions and are cruising already this year.

D'Errico played in all 36 matches last season and has played in all 12 thus far in 2008 and is tied for third on the team with 68 digs.

She has 13 assists and 10 service aces.

Penn State will be hosting Purdue on Friday and Illinois on Saturday.

D'Errico led Byron-Bergen to three straight New York State Public High School Athletic Association titles (2004-2006) while earning first-team all-state honors in all three seasons.

Check out this cool little Q&A with D'Errico that is on the Penn State Web site.