SAYRE, P.A. (WETM) – Local high school basketball will have a new holiday schedule, this December. On Tuesday night, Athens and Waverly High School Athletic Directors and basketball coaches met with The Valley Christmas Tournament committee to finalize a new future of holiday hoops. The meeting at Yanuzzi’s Restaurant in Sayre officially retired the long-standing […]
SAYRE, P.A. (WETM) – Local high school basketball will have a new holiday schedule, this December.
On Tuesday night, Athens and Waverly High School Athletic Directors and basketball coaches met with The Valley Christmas Tournament committee to finalize a new future of holiday hoops. The meeting at Yanuzzi’s Restaurant in Sayre officially retired the long-standing Valley Christmas Tournament, which originated in 1967, while introducing a new holiday showcase.
On December 20th, Waverly High School will host a day of JV and varsity basketball games, which will be spearheaded by the UNICO National charity organization, in an effort to raise money for students with disabilities and special needs.
The first annual UNICO showcase will feature 4 games; JV and varsity matchups between the Waverly and Windsor girls teams and the Waverly and Athens boys. All of the proceeds will go to UNICO, who will assist special education funding in the area. For Waverly Athletic Director Rich McIntosh, the special day of games will be a more efficient way to give back to the community, while honoring the goal of the original Valley Christmas Tournament.
“It’s going to be a seamless transition from one entity to another, said McIntosh. It’s bittersweet to see it (The Valley Christmas Tournament) go, because Waverly, Sayre, and Athens are all tremendous community partners in the valley. The tournament had just become to difficult to run annually and now we have found something that is still engaging for the schools and the community, as well as providing funds for the local kids.”
In addition to the new showcase, Valley Christmas Tournament committee president Denny Thomas presented $1,000 checks to each of the local competing school’s basketball programs, while pledging to donate $2,500 to UNICO, in support of the new event. Thomas also added that the committee will donate to the upcoming Athens Christmas Tournament, which is finalizing a late December debut (proposed for December 27th-29th).
After reviving The Valley Christmas Tournament from a hiatus over 9 years ago, Thomas shared with 18 Sports, that the event’s ultimate goals have been about giving back and will carry on through the new upcoming ventures.
“I think that every cent of the money we gave out to the teams tonight will be put back into the community,” said Thomas.
As part of the special night, Thomas reflected back on the legacy that the local holiday tournament will leave, having been involved as a player, coach, referee, Athens’ Athletic Director, and tournament committee president.
“Our Christmas tournament has been jam packed for years, said Thomas. Over the years, we’ve given out $22,000 to the teams and $20,000 to charities. I can’t thank enough, our superintendents, coaches, and AD’s, as well as our sponsors. We couldn’t have done any of this without them, they’ve all been so great.”
Stick with 18 Sports for the latest on the new UNICO Holiday Showcase, Athens Christmas Tournament, Josh Palmer Fund Holiday Classic, and other high school basketball news in the Twin Tiers.
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Category: General Sports
