The crowd could feel the energy in Juenger Gymnasium as students and faculty filled the bleachers to watch the Balling with Buddies 4-on-4 basketball tournament. This event was a fundraiser for Haverford’s Best Buddies, a group dedicated to promoting inclusion for all people regardless of intellectual ability. 

The tournament got off to an exciting start, with round one including eight 7-minute games. In the matchup between the Mill Road Bullies and BBB (Big Baller Brand), a tie score at the end of regulation led to a free throw shootout, where Junior Googie Seidman scored the winning foul shot. In a rivalry between two teams from Science teacher Jonathan Howe’s homeroom, Sophomore JC Campbell hit a three-pointer to beat the buzzer. And in a close battle between Wii Sports and the 5 Ballahs, athletic trainer Brendan Boas drained a winning three with just 25 seconds remaining to advance the 5 Ballahs. 

The second round featured more close matchups, especially the game between Best Buddies and Howe’s homeroom, which ended in a buzzer-beating three for Team Howe. In the semifinals, the Mill Road Bullies shut out Team Howe, and the 5 Ballahs defeated “Kevin is a Simp” on a free throw by Freshman Megan Kelly. 

This led to the championship, a 3 minute game between the Mill Road Bullies and the 5 Ballahs. The 5 Ballahs jumped out to an early 8-2 lead, thanks to back-to-back threes by trainer David Androezzi, but Seidman easily answered with back-to-back threes of his own. The game was tied at 8 with 20 seconds to go. Then Junior Brian Wiener drove in for the go-ahead layup to lead the Mill Road Bullies to victory. And with that, the Mill Road Bullies, consisting of Wiener, Seidman, Junior Tommy Wright, and Senior Emma Rowland, are the 2022 Balling with Buddies champions. 

The Haverford Sports Media broadcast of this tournament can be found here.