Davis & Davis Scholarship: Brownsville boy
Onesko shows Falcon pride even in tough times Patrick Onesko remembers watching the Brownsville Area High School football team growing up in the late 1990s.
The Falcons were one of the premier squads in the WPIAL during a four-year run beginning in 1997, the year Brownsville played in the Class AAA title game at Three Rivers Stadium.
Coached by Don Bartolomucci, Brownsville quickly forged a reputation throughout the WPIAL as a talented, well-coached, hard-nosed team. It was definitely good to be a Falcons’ fan.
“I remember going to the games at Redstone Field,” Onesko said. “You would have to get there two-and-a-half or three hours early just to park and get a seat.”
In recent years, the team has fallen on hard times. Brownsville has won just 12 games over the past six years, but the downward spiral didn’t stop Onesko from becoming a team leader and wearing his Falcons’ uniform with pride.
Because of his efforts on the playing field and in the classroom, Onesko, the son of George and Kimberly Onesko, of East Millsboro, was selected as the top male student/athlete at Brownsville Area High School and will receive a $500 scholarship through the Fayette County Student/Athlete Scholarship Program.
The program, sponsored by Davis and Davis Attorneys at Law in conjunction with the Herald-Standard, will provide $7,000 in scholarship money to 14 of Fayette County’s best and brightest student/athletes.
A banquet will culminate the program on Sunday, June 3, at the Historic Summit Inn.
At that time, each of the 14 honorees will receive $500 toward a college education. HSTV will videotape the program.
Onesko, the grandson of Dolores Onesko, of New Jersey, and Carole Provance, of Brownsville, carries a 3.65 grade point average and ranks No. 13 in his class of 150.
Because of his academic excellence, Onesko has received the Scholar’s Award to attend Washington & Jefferson University. Over the next four years, Onesko will receive $11,500 per year toward his education.
“It’s not a full ride, but it’s the college’s second largest scholarship,” said Onesko, who will double major in Economics and History. “I felt pretty honored. I didn’t expect it.
“It feels good. It’s sort of a reward I guess. The scholarship makes you realize that all the hard work, and studying and keeping up with your grades didn’t go unnoticed. Somebody was watching and somebody did notice.”
Onesko plans to take one year off from football, but intends to come back strong and ready as a sophomore.
“I’ve decided to wait a year before going out for the team,” Onesko said. “I want to get used to school and train real hard for one year. I want to get in as good as shape as I possibly can. As soon as I get to school, I’m going to talk to the coach and make him aware of my plans and take it from there.”
As a sophomore and junior, Onesko manned the Falcons’ offensive line at center. But because of injuries, he played all three offensive line positions his senior year.
Onesko’s senior season wound up being his most trying, but not because of the different positions. Two years ago, a near .500 finish (4-5) led to increased numbers, expectations and enthusiasm heading into the 2006 season.
But after five games, the Falcons were winless and the team started falling apart.
“We had some success my junior year; we were a competitive team,” Onesko said. “Going into my senior year, everybody was very excited. At the beginning of camp, we dressed close to 65 people. But by midseason, we were down to 30-something. We had a lot of kids drop off.
“It was tough, but I tried to keep on fighting through it. I wanted to make sure the guys who were still with it fought to. I never considered not playing. It was tough sometimes, but I always went back and kept fighting.”
In addition to football and academics, Onesko was a member of Student Council, Student Cabinet, Academic League, Ski Club, National Honor Society, French National Honor Society, Drama Club and he served as a volunteer for the Jamestown/Yorktown Foundation.
Last season, Onesko was also nominated for the Wendy’s High School Heisman Award.
Throw in a part-time job at the Finish Line and it’s easy to see why time usually was of the essence for Onesko.
“It was a lot of work,” Onesko said. “But I knew how to balance my time and that was helpful. You definitely have to learn how to multi-task, and that can only help you down the road. Sometimes, it did get a little overwhelming, when I’d be getting home for dinner at 8 p.m., but I learned to balance it out.
“It did take me a little while. During my sophomore year, I really started to pick up on things, both in school and on the football team. I realized I had to work hard, not just during the season, but really harder during the offseason. I tried to stay in shape and work hard all winter and I tried to learn how to be a leader.”