Westhampton Beach Coach to be Inducted Into Wrestling Hall of Fame

Photo courtesy of the Westhampton Beach School District

The Westhampton Beach School District recently announced that on April 24, high school teacher and varsity wrestling coach Paul Bass will be inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame.

“I am very humbled by this honor,” said Bass. “It is not only an honor for me, but for our program, coaches, athletes and parents.”

Bass is receiving the honor for not just his dedicated service as a coach in both the Westhampton Beach and William Floyd School Districts, but also as a former Westhampton Beach High School wrestler.

Prior to his coaching career, Bass, as a high school student in 1978, earned the 155 lb. Suffolk County Wrestling Champion title.

He soon graduated high school and moved on to Bloomsberg State College where he realized he wanted to dedicate his life to teaching and coaching.

He earned his degree in 1982 and took a job coaching the William Floyd Middle School wrestling team.

It was during that time that he ran into his former Westhampton Beach wrestling Coach Ed Broderick, who asked him to apply for a social studies teacher position in Westhampton Beach and also help to build Westhampton Beach’s wrestling team into a successful program.

“I knew I could do it. I had a core group of kids,” Bass said. “The turn-around came quickly and within three years the Hurricanes were posting back-to-back titles.”

During the course of his 32 years in Westhampton Beach, Bass continued to grow the wrestling program into one that consistently competes at high level.

He has accumulated 250 wins and by the end of the 2015 season, he will stand among the top ten winning Suffolk County coaches.

Bass, who has also earned the “Coach of the Year” title six times in his career, has created a program that produced more than 200 All-League wrestlers, 41 All- County, 4 County Champs, 8 State Qualifiers and 5 All-State wrestlers.

“Our main objective is to help mold and make young men, something larger than just points on the scoreboard,” said Bass. “Wrestling teaches you about life innso many ways; it teaches you dedication; builds confidence; and teaches you how to compete.”

Bass said wrestling also teaches students about overcoming adversity — something he knows about all too well.

At the age of 30, he was diagnosed with thyroid cancer, but with the odds against him, he pulled through, with the help of his wife, Kim.

“Anything Paul has ever done in his life has been because people have told him that he couldn’t do it,” said Kim.

Aside from serving as a coach, for the past 20 years, Bass has sat on the executive board of the Suffolk County Wrestling Coaches Association where he acted as treasurer and is currently the vice-president.