LYNN — The 44th annual Lynn Elementary Basketball Tournament went off without a hitch at Thurgood Marshall Middle School Saturday, as six champions took home the crown following a two-year hiatus due to COVID-19.
The tournament was hosted for 43 years at Pickering Middle School until this year. Marshall Middle School provides a larger gym, which allows more fans to fill the stands to cheer on their friends and family.
“This is our first year at Thurgood Marshall Middle School, and it’s been incredible,” said tournament director Sean Morris. “After not being able to host the tournament for two years, it’s nice that we’re able to be back to normal.”
The Lynn Woods girls took home the Div. 3 title with a win over Aborn, behind an incredible seven-point performance by Tahlia Gallo. Her teammates, Sienna White and Autumn Persaud, each had a basket in their team’s championship win.
For the Div. 2 girls, No. 1-seeded Shoemaker took off with the title, winning 16-5 over Brickett. Angelina Owumi scored 10 of the 16 points for her team’s victory, lifting her team to its first title since 2003.
The Div. 1 girls title game ended with Cobbet winning its first title in 22 years over Ingalls, on the heels of Keiry DeLeon with six points and Si’Niyah Coates with four points. Cobbet’s victory over the No.1-seeded Ingalls came by a score of 10-8.
“For a lot of these parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles, this is the first time seeing their kids in organized sports,” said Morris. “To be able to come out after two years of not being able to play, I think it adds an extra level of excitement.”
For the boys, the Div. 3 title went to Aborn in a 45-19 win over Sewell-Anderson. Trevin Bingham scored 28 points — which is fifth-most of all-time in the tournament — in Aborn’s win for the championship. Makaid Pabon scored 14 points for Sewell.
In Div. 2 boys, Shoemaker took on Washington. Jack Nardone had an astounding 15 points in the 24-21 victory for Shoemaker. Ben Phelps came up big on defense and contributed four points. Jadiel Garcia had six points and Javen Serran had five points for Washington.
The Div. 1 championship on the boys side was between Hood and Ingalls. Ingalls was able to keep their lead by a small margin and win the crown with a score of 8-6 over the undefeated Hood. Santiago Moreno and Joan Paul Alves both had two points for Ingalls. Tyler McCarthy was Hood’s highest scorer.
The tournament comes to an end next Saturday with the boys and girls all–star games. The teams representing East and West Lynn will be announced Monday.
