A gathered crowd erupted into applause as Thomas Baia and William Atlas walked out the back door of Baia’s home with their families Wednesday morning.

During a noontime press conference the two coaches who have been cleared of charges in connection with an alleged hazing case were joined by dozens of community members and friends, who stood behind a gaggle of reporters holding signs declaring their support for the coaches.

“Never would I knowingly allow a student to be physically abusive to another student,” Baia told the crowd. “I have dedicated my adult life to being the very opposite of what these charges say.”

As Atlas spoke about his job as a coach and physical education teacher, he became choked up, pausing for a moment to collect himself.

“I have worked hard for 11 years to get the perfect job ... being a positive influence on children,” he said. “Because of the accusations, this joy was ripped from my life instantly.”

While Mike Paul, a representative for the coaches who put together Wednesday’s press conference, said the coaches could not speak to the charges against the students, Baia and Atlas said they did not see anything out of the ordinary on the April 17, 2008 bus ride when the incident was said to have occurred. Three players were initially charged with various counts of aggravated sexual abuse and endangering the welfare of a child, charges that were later reduced to first- and second-degree hazing and forcible touching.

Baia said he was sitting in the front of the bus with Atlas and their assistant coaches. Baia was turned toward the back of the bus, talking to Atlas, for all but five minutes of the trip, he said. He recalled the players singing, chanting and talking.

“It seemed just like the other 400 or so bus rides that I have taken in my 19-year career as a coach,” Baia said. “I am certain that nothing inappropriate was going on. ... Nobody alerted me that anything had happened, that anyone had been touched. Nothing.”

Baia’s then-6-year-old son was in the back of the bus with the players, he added.

Among those assembled in the crowd of supporters were several former players, including Wilson High School seniors Ethan Baker, 17, and Nate Meier, 16, who were on the bus during the alleged incident.

“I didn’t see anything,” Meier said.

In hindsight, Baia said he might have sat in the back of the bus, though he said in his 19 years of experience, coaches have always sat in the front.

“It would have avoided a bad situation,” he said.

State police conduct

The coaches said they will appeal to the state government to release information about an internal investigation by state police into the conduct of its investigators during the case.

“They’re asking ... to be informed as to the number of New York State Police officers who will be punished for their actions,” Paul said. “We just want proof that the investigation will not be shoved under the rug.”

Sidote Sr. said he believes those who testified were “strong-armed” by state police investigators. He said his son was not allowed to have a lawyer or parent present during his interview with the state troopers’ office.

When asked whether the coaches would seek any legal action against the state police, Baia said they “haven’t made any decisions.”

Community support

Both coaches took time to thank the community for sticking by them.

“The support is overwhelming,” Baia said.

Baia’s stepson, Chris Andrasik, 17, a recent graduate from Wilson High School, said the family is stronger because of the ordeal.

“It’s going to take a while for everything to get back to normal,” Andrasik said.

Several people said the community of Wilson has been split in two camps: Those who believe the alleged victims, and those who have stood by the coaches and players who were arrested.

“My mom lost a good friend of it, because they’re on different sides of the story,” Meier said.

Jonathan Shafer, 18, who graduated from Wilson High School in 2008, said the “stigma” of the alleged hazing incident has followed him to college, while Meier said it has followed current WHS students and sports players.

“Doing sports and stuff, you hear other teams saying stuff about it,” Meier said.

Baia said that’s the most “heartbreaking” thing he’s heard.

“That is the single thing that breaks my heart about this case, is that innocent kids are afraid to wear their varsity jackets, afraid to say they’re from Wilson,” he said. “The truth has to come out.”

Ongoing case

Though the coaches’ case has concluded, for the parents of the players involved, the court process is not yet over.

The verdict has not yet come in for the two players who went to trial in Wilson Town Court last week. Testimony in the trial for Christopher Sidote and Colton Sherman, both 17, concluded July 1, and Town Justice George Berger has yet to render his decision.

A third teen, Geoffrey Seefeldt, pleaded guilty before trial to a reduced charge.

Sidote’s parents, Christopher Sidote Sr., and Kary Sidote, spoke at Wednesday’s press conference about what the past year has been like for their son, who just completed his junior year.

The teen was suspended after his arrest but allowed to return to school in December after an administrative hearing. His time at school has been “severely limited,” his father said.

In order to avoid seeing the alleged victims, the teen has been told to leave class three minutes early every day and to sit in the front of the bus to avoid contact. He was not allowed to go to the prom.

“My son has suffered,” Christopher Sidote Sr., said. “His whole line of thinking has changed.”

The teen did run for class president — losing by seven votes.