Induction Graduation Sport Type

2023 2014 Baseball | Football Athlete

Thomas Pipolo, a Rye Neck High School Class of 2014 graduate, was a natural leader in multiple sports for the Rye Neck Panthers. He was the signal caller as starting Quarterback for the Panthers on the football field and on the baseball diamond he called the shots as starting Catcher for all four years he was on the Varsity Baseball team.

On the gridiron, Pipolo was the starting Quarterback for three years. During that three year span, Pipolo completed 68 passes in 158 attempts, passed for 1,451 yards and threw 19 touchdowns. At the end of his career, Pipolo had a QBR of 117. To put this into perspective, an average QBR rating is around 50 on a scale of 0 to 100. In addition to his arm strength and accuracy, Pipolo was a mobile quarterback as well, helping his team get that extra yard when they needed it or punching into the endzone for a Touchdown, opening up the playbook for Coach Ianello with endless options. Pipolo rushed for 69 yards on 47 carries and rushed for 6 touchdowns. 

When asked about his former Quarterback, Coach Nick Ianello, a Rye Neck Hall of Fame inductee himself, said of Pipolo that “Having Pip as the QB was like having a coach on the field. He was the ultimate leader and competitor.” Having coached multiple Rye Neck Hall of Fame athletes and coaching countless successful teams, a comment like with from Coach I is not handed out frequently. This was earned and for good reason. Often referred to as “Pip,” Thomas garnered significant playoff experience during his time as a Panther and the road there was one for the books. Pip was named Captain during his junior and senior campaigns with the Panthers. On a personal note, Pipolo was named All League in 2012 and 2013, was given the All-Section Honorable Mention in 2013, won the Golden Dozen Award in 2013 and lastly was named the Regional Championship Offensive MVP and State Championship Offensive MVP. 

In addition to his personal accolades, Pip led his team deep into the playoffs on the road to the Carrier Dome on multiple occasions. In 2012, Pipolo led his team to an undefeated regular season and garnered a total of eight wins on the year, receiving their first and only loss of the year deep in their playoff run as they made it to the Section I Finals that year. To follow up an already storied season and high school football career, Pipolo led his team the very next year on a wild ride all the way to the Carrier Dome for the New York State Class C Football Championship Game. Going into the 2013 season, the Panthers were ranked #2 in all of Class C for New York State Football and for good reason after Pipolo helped lead them to an undefeated season the year prior. During the 2013 season, the Rye Neck Panthers had yet again another undefeated regular season, won the Class C Section I Championship for the first time in school history, won the NYS Regional Championship, and were 2013 NYS Finalists. They finished the regular season and postseason with a cumulative record of 11-1 in 2013, receiving their only loss of the entire season in the New York State Class C  Championship Game at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, NY where they lost to Chenango Forks in a nailbiter with a final score of 28-27. 

As good as Pip was on the gridiron, he was arguably an even better ball player. Pipolo played for the Rye Neck High School Varsity Baseball team for all four years of his high school career and was their starting catcher for all four of those seasons. During his baseball career at Rye Neck, Pip put up stellar numbers boasting a .992 FP, a .360 BA, and a .476 OBP. He racked up over 100 career hits and during his senior year recorded 30 hits, 86 RBI’s and scored 16 runs. During his senior year campaign, Pipolo started at catcher in all 26 games that the Panthers played that season. As if those stats aren't impressive enough, Pipolo called all the pitches when he was behind the plate, which led to his pitchers having the lowest ERA in all of Section I during the 2014 season. As a result of his impressive numbers on the field, Pipolo received many accolades off the field in recognition of his performance. He was named All Section, All County, All State and the Senior Team MVP. To cap it all off, Thomas Pipolo was named a ConEd Award Winner on May 2nd, 2014 as the Panther’s prepared for a fierce playoff push. Pipolo would go on to help the Panthers win the 2014 Section I Baseball Title and led the team all the way to the State Final, the first in Rye Neck school history. The Panthers took second place in the state, losing a tight game to Schalmont at Binghamton University with a final score of 3-1. 

After his high school playing career at Rye Neck was complete, Pipolo went on to play baseball at the college level where he played Division I Baseball. He started off his collegiate student-athlete career at UMBC and Florida SouthWestern State College during his undergraduate studies and during his graduate studies continued to play at the University of Massachusetts and Long Island University. In addition to playing baseball, Pipolo received his Associates in Business Management, Bachelors in Sports Management and MBA in Data Analytics during his collegiate years. Rye Neck is proud to call Thomas Pipolo one of their own and is even prouder to cement his rightful place in the Rye Neck Panthers Hall of Fame.