POMPEY HILL - A state trooper was killed Sunday evening after crashing into a tree during a high-speed chase in Onondaga County.

State police said Craig Todeschini, 25, of Geddes was following a motorcyclist traveling around 100 miles an hour through the hamlet of Pompey Hill.

Todeschini was responding to a call around 6 p.m. when the motorcyclist passed him. He followed for about two miles before losing control near an intersection, said Capt. Jeffrey Raub, Zone 2 commander in Onondaga County.

Witness William Blanck, 51, said he was pumping gas when he saw the motorcycle come through town “like a bat out of hell.” The posted speed was 30 mph.

State police had not located the motorcycle Sunday night.

Pompey Supervisor Carole Marsh said the community has had problems in the past few years with speeding motorcycles. The town board budgeted $15,000 for extra sheriff patrols last year.

“We've had a number of fatalities over the years, it's very dangerous for the residents,” Marsh said. “My heart goes out to this family, and I'm sure every resident of this town feels the same way.”

Raub said Todeschini had been a trooper for 3 years. “He was a trooper's trooper,” Raub said. “He was an honorable individual, who took his job seriously.”

State Police Superintendent Wayne Bennett was brought by helicopter to the crash scene and then went to the home of Todeschini's wife.

Todeschini had been expecting the birth of his first child in a month.

“The state police is all in a state of grief for our loss, his wife's loss and his parents' loss,” Raub said.