40th Holiday Basketball Tournament Starts Wednesday!
In the fall of 1970, Nick Marinaro arrived at Rivers fresh from Indiana to coach the school’s varsity football, basketball, and baseball teams. As soon as football season ended, he asked then-athletic director Andy Navoni about any upcoming preseason basketball tournaments, only to find out that no such event existed for New England independent schools. Three phone calls later – to Nobles, BB&N, and Belmont Hill – the Rivers Holiday Basketball Tournament was born.
Wednesday marks the kick-off of the 40th annual tournament, which athletics director Jim McNally describes as the “biggest athletic event of the year” for Rivers. Since its inception, the tournament has grown substantially and now features varsity teams from nine schools—Belmont Hill, BB&N, Middlesex, Millbrook, Milton, Pingree, Pomfret, Rivers, and St. Sebastian’s.
“The tournament has become inextricably linked to the culture of The Rivers School,” McNally says. “It’s great to see the entire community come together to embrace the tradition and celebrate such great camaraderie between the teams.”
The tournament also has become a significant charitable event for Rivers Givers, one of the school’s community service organizations. In the past, a portion of gate receipts have been donated to causes such as Globe Santa, Pediatric Aids Research, and The New England Shelter for Homeless Veterans. More recently, attendees have been asked to give donations instead of admission fees. This year, donations will go to Circle of Hope, a nonprofit that supports medical care in Haiti, as well as the Youth Police Dialogues program, a series sponsored by the Boston YWCA that engages high-risk youth in productive dialogue with police officers.
Come cheer on the Red Wings starting Thursday, December 17, with opening games at 7 p.m. (for the girls) and 8:30 p.m. (for the boys).
THE 2009 RIVERS HOLIDAY TOURNAMENT
FIRST ROUND-WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 16th
HOME VISITOR
4:00 Pingree VS BBN (Boys’ #3)
FIRST ROUND-THURSDAY, DECEMBER 17TH
HOME VISITOR
4:00 Milton VS Pomfret (Boys’ #2)
5:30 Belmont Hill VS St. Sebastian’s (Boys’ #1)
7:00 RIVERS VS Milton (Girls’ #1)
8:30 RIVERS VS Millbrook (Boys’ #4)
SECOND ROUND-FRIDAY, DECEMBER 18TH
HOME VISITOR
2:00 Loser B1 VS Loser B2 (Boys’ #5)
3:30 Middlesex VS Pingree (Girls’ #2)
5:00 Loser B4 VS Loser B3 (Boys’ #6 )
7:00 Winner B2 VS Winner B1 (Boys’ #7)
8:30 Winner B4 VS Winner B3 (Boys’ #8)
THIRD ROUND-SATURDAY, DECEMBER 19th
HOME VISITOR
10:00 Winner B6 VS Winner B5 (Boys’ #9)
11:30 Loser G1 VS Loser G2 (Girls’ #3)
1:00 Loser B8 VS Loser B7 (Boys’ #10)
GIRLS’ CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
2:30 Winner G1 VS Winner G2 (Girls’ #4)
BOYS’ CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
4:30 Winner B8 VS Winner B7 (Boys’ # 11)
