One of the core missions of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame is to recognize excellence, and when distinction is mentioned it is always associated with Scott Freischlag of Section V. The 1981 graduate of Lewiston-Porter High School, where he is a member of their Athletic Hall of Fame for his exceptional contributions in the sports of football and wrestling, Scott has exemplified excellence at all his athletic endeavors. In the 1980-81 high school season Scott was selected All-State in football and completed a stellar wrestling career by garnering the Section VI wrestling title. Following high school, Scott attended Ashland College and participated in both football and wrestling. During his freshman campaign at Division II Ashland, Scott was the Heartland Conference runner-up. Scott transferred to Cortland State the next year and enjoyed a very successful career for the Red Dragons. Subsequent to his illustrious wrestling career at Cortland State, which included a 1985 SUNY championship and being presented with the "Red Letter" which recognized him as the most outstanding wrestler on the Cortland State squad, Scott commenced his coaching career at Ridgewood High School in New Jersey. Then in 1990, Freischlag Joined the coaching ranks for Section Five's Wayne Central School, and during his coaching career he has steered the Eagles to an impressive 243-47-2 record. The Eagles have gained two Class B Sectional championships (2001 & 03); four Class A titles (2004,05,07,08) and two Class BBB Sectional trophies (2015 and 16). In the 2016-17 campaign, Scott was selected by the Section V Wrestling Officials' Association as the Coach of the Year. Furthermore, Coach Freischlag has been named the "Coach of the Year" for his division eight times - which is quite an achievement considering that he is coaching in probably the best Division II wrestling section in the Empire State. Complementing those accomplishments as a team, Coach Freischlag's wrestlers have won a grand total of 72 individual sectional championships and thirty-one NYSPHSAA state qualifiers. In addition, Scott has trained five New York State Champions: Josh Patterson (06), Ryan Lamagra (06), Bob Dierna (08), Al Dierna (10) and his most recent, Matt Caccamise in 2016. Many of these wrestlers would excel at the collegiate level as well. Josh Paterson grappled at Binghamton University and was a four-time NCAA Division I qualifier and All-American at the 184 pound weight class for the Colonials. Luke Baum, Brad Mayville and Tory Cain wrestled at RIT and were Division III All-Americans. Wrestling at Cortland State, Bob Dierna was a two-time Division III NCAA Champion and was named the New York State College Wrestler of the Year in 2016. Furthermore, Bryan Lantry is wrestling for the Bulls of the University of Buffalo and had a second-place finish in the prestigious Midland Wrestling Tournament this season. Chris Bourne, Section V Wrestling Chairperson for numerous years, stated, "The reason for the success of the Wayne wrestling program throughout Scott's tenure is his year-round dedication to promoting and advancing wrestlers. Scott is a vigorous worker. Open mats, clinics, weight room opportunities, and recruiting wrestlers in his physical education classes are the reasons he has had a winning program in all 23 years as a varsity coach." These accomplishments speak to the stature of coaching that Coach Scott Freischlag epitomizes... excellence on all levels. Fellow wrestling coach Bill Hadsell contributes these remarks about Freischlag, "I have known Scott since I started coaching in 1993. There are few with his competitiveness and attention to details. Scott's dedication to the sport of wrestling, and particularly Wayne wrestling program, is unsurpassed. You would be hard pressed to find a better coach in New York State than Scott Freischlag." Scott's daughter, Kayla, had this to say about her father, "My father was totally dedicated to his wrestlers and wrestling at Wayne High School. One of the things that bring him the most pleasure is to have his former wrestlers return to the school and recall some of the exciting moments of their careers with him. He always remembers everything about them. Additionally, he really enjoys being able to coach the children of his past wrestlers and experience their success." Kayla also mentions that no matter what his involvement in wrestling was, her father was always there for her and brother, Kurt. Furthermore, Kayla highlighted that her mother, Mary, played a very supportive role in Scott's success. Kayla stated that her father has said often, "I could not have done it without her." Presently, Scott and Mary reside in Ontario, New York. Their son, Kurt, is an occupational therapist in Reno, Nevada, daughter Ali is working in the defense industry and living in Arlington, Virginia and Kayla is a student at Vermont University studying environmental science and working in her spare time for Don and Yvonne Knataitis of CP Sportswear. The Upstate New York Chapter of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame is privileged and honored to welcome Coach Scott Freischlag into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame for our chapter.