Working
toward new
heights in a
pandemic
Woodstock Academy strength and conditioning coach Brenden Ostaszewski has been known as “Coach O” since he arrived on campus four years ago.
Soon he will go by the title “Dr. O.”.
Ostaszewski has been working toward his doctorate degree in health and human performance through Concordia University in Chicago.
He recently passed his comprehensive exam and will hopefully be a Ph.D. candidate in the fall of this year.
“I’m excited, but it’s a little stressful,” Ostaszewski said of the process of working toward a doctorate degree.
Ostaszewski still has a major hurdle to clear - his doctorate dissertation.
“The dissertation takes months. I hope to be completed within the year but usually the papers for a dissertation run 100-300 pages. The process starts with a pre-proposal defense, and once that gets accepted, I can go a little further in detail with the dissertation process. Later down the line, I have to defend my dissertation,” he said.
Ostaszewski has chosen an issue of current concern; the impact and effects of COVID-19 on student-athletes.
To call it a very relevant topic may be an understatement. He deals with it on a daily basis at Woodstock Academy.
“The pandemic has affected student-athletes in a negative way. The majority of the kids are very sedentary right now because they are sitting at home e-learning. There is also a general lack of motivation too,” Ostaszewski said.
That sedentary period was recently extended at Woodstock Academy.
While portions of the state began practices for winter sports on Jan. 19, Woodstock Academy wasn’t so lucky.
Due to the high positivity rate in the area, eclipsing 20 percent of those who were tested for the virus in Woodstock, Woodstock Academy pushed back the beginning of winter sports to Feb. 1.
To keep student-athletes active during the lull between fall and winter sports, Ostaszewski has been busy.
 “Fortunately, we have been able to have the kids come in and train in a small group setting within the strength and conditioning program. It’s not the same. The pandemic has had a negative influence on their physical activity levels and on their mental and psychological state as well,” Ostaszewski said.
For that reason and the length of inactivity, almost a year for some, Ostaszewski said winter coaches will have to be cognizant of their athletes’ fitness.
 “We’re recommending that coaches monitor athletes’ performance levels and how they feel on the court. A lot of the kids could be under-trained especially with the day students elearning and the prep kids coming back. Who knows what they have done at home? A lot of different states have different restrictions so some kids may not have been able to train. Coaches have to be mindful of where (the athletes) are coming from,” Ostaszewski said.
Ostaszewski said the fall season was helpful and he is hoping that there will be competition this winter as well as in the spring.
The ECC recently announced a plan to start a 10-game boys’ and girls’ basketball schedule beginning Feb. 12.
Due to some first-week byes in the schedule, Woodstock Academy will not play any games until Feb. 16.
The league will play a regional schedule with Woodstock Academy in a group with Plainfield, Griswold, Killingly, Lyman Memorial, Windham, Putnam, Tourtellotte and Wheeler.
Woodstock Academy is also trying to get some boys’ and girls’ hockey games scheduled.
The team will play out of the RoseGarden Ice Arena in Norwich as the Pomfret School rink is closed for the season.
That nugget, a potential season, is very important to high school athletes.
“When we were training this past summer, kids were wondering what they were actually training for and if there was going to be a season. You can tell that the unknown takes a toll, not only on their performance in the weight room, but psychologically as well,” Ostaszewski said.
And the same could be said for the Woodstock Academy prep basketball players.
What has made it more difficult on the prep team is that, in addition to the lack of games, players have to quarantine when they return to campus.
“When quarantine is over, we have to start the training process all over again and get prepared for training again. Not knowing if there is an upcoming season, the kids can use this time to develop their bodies and get stronger and bigger, hopefully, to get them ready to play at the next level,” Ostaszewski said.
Ostaszewski feels like he has been caught in a “Groundhog Day” scenario when it comes to the prep and even some high school athletes.
“It’s like a general preparation period repeating itself over-and-over again. We get an athlete in the door and we start with very basic, fundamental stuff. We teach them fundamental movement patterns. When they return, if these kids with all these restrictions are more sedentary than before, we have to start the whole process over again,” Ostaszewski said.
In addition, at least at the high school level, games will be played with masks on.
“It’s definitely going to be a challenge. It may be a little uncomfortable while playing,” Ostaszewski said. “Breaks will be needed because kids will be performing high intensity activities for a repeat amount of time. It’s not like football which is stop-and-go. Kids are constantly moving on the court so I would recommend mask breaks.”
He pointed out that some companies are starting to produce sports performance masks which will allow athletes to breathe a little better during competition.
And the challenges will not exist only on the physical level.
Ostaszewski said he can imagine non-verbal communication on the court will also be a challenge as facial expressions normally shared between players and between players and coaches will be limited.
Marc Allard
Director of Sports Information
The Woodstock Academy

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Winter Water
One thing is for sure, winter water looks cold! More on page 5. Linda Lemmon photo.

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1919 classic
goes home
PUTNAM — A classic Oldsmobile last week returned to its roots, making the journey from Putnam to Lansing, Mich.
The car was built in Lansing and is now returning — it’ll have a home in the R.E. Oldsmobile Transportation Museum.
The 1919 Oldsmobile, owned by Greg King, third-generation owner of the former King Cadillac GMC, said his grandfather, Walter King, purchased the car in 1959.
King believes his grandfather may have bought the car because he was an Oldsmobile dealer and wanted it for promotional events. Or he may have purchased that one “because it was built the same year as my father (Russell King) was born. I will never know because he had a stroke in 1960 and never drove again.”
King added, “People who remember my father, Russell King, know that he didn’t spend a lot of time on leisure events. He put it away in storage.
“In 1966 I got my driver’s license and thought we should show this car off. I joined the Yankee Yesteryear Car Club and took it to some car shows and drove it in some parades.  I took it to many car shows at the Woodstock Fairgrounds,” King said.
He said: “The last time I had it out was in 2004 when Oldsmobile built its last car. I took some pictures of it next to a 2004 Oldsmobile, one of the last Oldsmobiles we sold.
“This car was built in Lansing and now it is going back home.”

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PSA's Harris
accepts
Howard U
scholarship
The fact that Howard University is an HBCU isn’t the main reason that Bryce Harris committed there this week. But it is a pretty cool reason nonetheless.
Harris, Putnam Science Academy’s 6-foot, 6-inch, 220-pound guard, announced his decision to accept a full basketball scholarship to the Washington, D.C. school this past weekend, and in the process will become the fourth member of his family to attend a historically Black college and university. His father went to North Carolina A&T, while both his cousin and sister attended Hampton University.
“I wanted to add some Bryce to the mix,” he said with a smile.
The biggest thing that led him to Howard was his relationship with head coach Kenneth Blakeney. Harris said Blakeney began recruiting him early when he was a member of the Class of 2020 and kept recruiting him hard when Harris reclassified to the Class of 2021.
“When you have a coach that shows that much effort, it’s going to be a good place to be,” Harris said. “And basketball-wise, I really feel like I’ll fit there. I’m going to be a piece of the puzzle.”
Howard, which plays in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference, has had eight games cancelled or postponed due so far to the pandemic, and has dropped four of five games in the disjointed season. The Bison struggled mightily last year, going 4-29.
Recruitment has been a roller coaster for Harris, as it has been for so many in his class. The pandemic shutdown essentially all in-person recruiting – college coaches weren’t allowed to go out and watch kids play (if there even games being played), student-athletes weren’t allowed to visit prospective colleges, and new transfer rules at the college level are leaving fewer open roster spots.
“I’m excited and relieved, probably more relieved than anything,” Harris said. “It’s getting the weight off your shoulders and you can play the game again for the fun of it and just for getting better. You don’t have to worry about what coaches are seeing or not seeing. I think it kind of put me on edge a little. Basketball is easier when you have less to think about. You’re going to make mistakes as a basketball player regardless but you don’t feel like your mistakes are as detrimental to your recruitment.”
With his size and strength, Harris is a mismatch for both smaller guards and bigger post players. He is originally from Brentwood, N.Y. on Long Island, but played his high school ball in North Carolina. Before coming to PSA for his postgrad year, Harris was ranked among the Top 10 players in both states. In two games before the pandemic shut down play here, he averaged nine points and six rebounds.
“He’s a talented player,” PSA coach Tom Espinosa said. “He can do a lot of things at his size that cause problems.”
Said Harris: “One of the Howard coaches actually told me, ‘Other players play like they came in a limo. You play like you took the bus.’ It’s good to be known as a hustle guy, grabbing offensive rebounds, doing the dirty work that is so important. But I can bring more too.”
Harris is the seventh member of this year’s team that has committed to a Division I school, joining Bensley Joseph (University of Miami), Nic Louis-Jacques (Colgate), Sean Durugordon (University of Missouri), Alexis Reyes (East Carolina), Mohamed Sanogo (Florida International), and newcomers Nana Owusu (Brown) and Josh Bascoe (Bucknell).
Stephen Nalbandian
Sports Information Director
Putnam Science Academy

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