Coaching Staff

Jason Motell

• Head Varsity Track and Field Coach:
  2007-present

• Head Varsity Indoor Coach:
  2013-present

• Modified Cross Country Coach:
  2008-present

The Chenango Forks Track and Field program has flourished under Coach Motell’s leadership. During his nineteen years as Head Coach, the Outdoor Program has produced:

• 11 STAC Divisional Team Championships (6 Girls and 5 Boys)

• 32 Individual and 7 Relay Class Champions

• 21 Individuals and 7 Relays that qualified for the State Meet

• 8 Individuals and 3 Relays getting on the Podium at the State Meet (including two Second Place finishers)

• 11 Individual and 2 Relay STAC Champions

• 9 Overall Sectional Champions

• 3 Team Invite Champions (The Need For Speed in 2017 and the Rotary Relays in 2023 and 2024)

61 School Records have also fallen or been tied during his era…

Coach Motell treats every athlete equally, works to instill a sense of confidence in everyone he coaches, and tries to keep even the tensest of moments light with his humor and kindness.

While he specializes in coaching the Varsity Sprinters for Outdoor, he has coached everything from Distance to Pole Vaulting for the Indoor Team… under his eleven-year tenure, four athletes and one relay team have qualified for the State Meet, and 27 School Records have been broken. To go along with this success at the Varsity level in both the Winter and Spring, Coach Motell is still able to shift gears to promote a laid back, while competitive Modified Cross Country culture for our younger athletes.

Contact: Motellj@cforks.org

Nick Groover

• Head Varsity Cross Country Coach:
  2019-present

• Varsity Indoor Coach:
  2016-present

• Varsity Distance Track Coach:
  2009-present

In Coach Groover’s five seasons as Head Varsity Cross Country Coach, the athletes have produced numerous personal bests as well as the 4th individual Sectional Champion in program history and the first team Sectional Championship for the girls in program history.

During Coach Groover’s 16 season tenure as Varsity Distance and Relays Coach, the team has produced:

• 11 new School Records

• 19 different athletes who appear on Individual Top 10 Lists a total of 41 times.

• 53 All Time Top 10 Relay Teams

• 7 Section IV Small School Champions

• 3 Overall Sectional Champions

Coach Groover was a member of the 2006 Division II Sectional Championship 3200M Relay and is currently 12th in career points at his alma mater. He has either been on or coached 5 of the 6 Sectional Championship Boys Relay teams in School History and coached one of the two Sectional Championship Girls Relay teams in CFTF’s history.

Coach Groover has a collaborative approach with his athletes, with a focus on creating a positive and fun team culture while emphasizing the process of improving each day. His philosophy centers around each athlete enjoying the sport and their experience being on the team while having a strong understanding of training and racing principles.

Contact: Groovern@cforks.org

Dr. Andrea Gumble

High Jump Coach:

1999-2002, 2014-2016, 2021-present

This is Coach Gumble’s twelfth year coaching for Chenango Forks Track and Field. Over the course of her tenure as the Sprinting and Hurdling coach, she has worked with School 100 Meter Dash Record Holder Melissa Mills (the only female Sprinter to make the State Meet in school history) and School Record Holder Gianna Lawrence in the 100M Hurdles, along with State Meet participant Hurdlers TJ Robinson and Rick DeFeyo. This most recent season saw her coach Ethan Vaseleck and Nate Raab to become just the 14th and 15th athletes in the history of the school to clear 6 feet in the High Jump!

PhD Gumble’s organizational habits are second to none, while her willingness to listen, openness to communicate, and enthusiasm to succeed are attributes that are often cited by our athletes when asked about her coaching style.

Tim Paske

Throwing Coach:

2022-present

Coach Paske comes to Forks after spending 7 seasons at Greene Central School. He has a background in all events, but here, he is specializing in coaching the Shot Put and Discus. During his time at Greene, Coach Paske has mentored:

• Numerous Sectional Champions and State competitors in Long Jump, Triple Jump, High Jump, 400, 400 Hurdles, 1600, 3200, and 4x400 Relay

• A 3-Time NYS State Champion in the 1600 and 3200 in Section IV Legend Chad Noelle

In just four seasons as our Throwing Coach, Paske has already guided four throwers to make our Top 20 All Time lists, including his son Walker and his daughter Lauren who is now our second-best thrower in the Discus All Time, our School record Holder in the Shot Put, and who became the first Thrower in School History to qualify for the State Meet in both the Shot Put and the Discus (qualifying for the Discus two years in a row and getting on the awards stand as a senior in 2025).

While he has a strong knowledge in many areas of Track and Field, it is Coach Paske’s positive mental attitude and ability to build relationships with his student-athletes that has helped contribute to their success on and off the track.

Contact: Pasket@cforks.org

Nate Ford

Horizontal Jumps Coach:

2023-present

Coach Ford enters his third season coaching Track and Field at Chenango Forks. He was a three-sport athlete at Oxford Academy and currently serves as our Boys Varsity Basketball Coach as well, leading them to their most successful season in thirty-five years in 2023 and another winning season in 2024!

This most recent Track season saw Ford coach Nate Raab to qualify for the State Meet (finishing Third overall in the State for Class C) in Long Jump and Ethan Vaseleck become only the 14th person in CFTF History to jump further than 40 feet in the Triple Jump.

Ford’s willingness to be blunt and honest with his athletes while still maintaining a sense of humor is what enables him to get the best out of the athletes he coaches.

Contact: Fordn@cforks.org