LYNNFIELD — The Parks and Recreation’s youth basketball summer league concluded yesterday evening as the championship game was played at the Lynnfield Middle School outside courts.
The championship game involved the Redshirts and the Worms, with the Worms squeezing out the win by a score of 49-48.
The intense heat was not slowing anybody down as both coaches and players came to the court full of excitement and energy. “This is my favorite thing to do all summer,” said Parks and Rec Director Julie Mallett.
The league started six years ago and was started in part, as a place for kids going into fifth to eighth grade to play basketball in a fun, relaxed environment and to take away the stresses of playing in high school and travel leagues.
“It’s the best time they have all summer,” Mallet said. “There’s no pressure like in regular leagues. Parents have come up to me and said they enjoy this because it’s a break from everything else.”
Just before the 6 p.m. tip-off time, teams were warming up to the song “Who let the Dogs Out” by Baha Men when coincidentally, the Rec’s new mascot, Big Red the dog, walked in and started warming up with the teams.
The two “top dogs” of the league were pitted against each other in the final match. The Worms had their undefeated streak on the line, and the Red Shirts were entering with only one loss. The Worms jumped out to an early 18-12 lead but the Red Shirts responded fast. The Red shirts were able to stay in the game by hitting key three point shots and by getting outstanding play by Oliver Hart, who acted as a human Swiss army knife on the court. Hart was doing it all, getting rebounds, hitting threes, and pushing the ball up the court. He was also exceptional at driving to the paint to draw fouls, especially late in the game to keep the Red Shirts within reach.
After the Red Shirts evened the game at 18, both teams would go on to trade a few baskets at the end of the half, with the Red Shirts taking a 23-21 lead into half time.
The Red Shirts would build off of their late first half momentum in the second as they continued to hit crucial three pointers and continued to get outstanding play by Hart. However, the Worms showed why they came into this game undefeated as they began to completely dominate the boards on the offensive side of the ball, allowing for multiple second chance baskets. The worms also began to lock down Hart and the Red Shirts with key defensive stops as the second half dragged on. The worms led by as many as five before a clutch bank shot three pointer from the Red Shirts cut the lead to two. Seconds later, Hart found his way back to the free throw line and made one of two shots to make it just a one point game with one minute remaining.
The Worms continued their dominance on the boards for the remainder of the game, getting rebound after rebound and getting the ball back to the top of the key to eat up critical time on the game clock. The Red Shirts were finally able to get a stop with just one second remaining and sent up a hail mary shot from the other side of the court that came up short as the Worms held on to win the championship, 49-48.
While the Red Shirts lost by the narrowest of margins, both teams seemed to have had a great experience and were happy to be a part of this easy going league, win or lose.
“Considering it was a one point game it was amazing,” Mallett said. “These kids have so much fun with this.”
The kids were not the only ones having fun at the game. The coaches, who are also counselors for Parks and Rec summer camps, began to make themselves overly animated during the game to add to the amusing and enjoyable atmosphere. After the game, Referee Cam Marengi reflected on how much he enjoyed being a part of the league. “It’s a blast, I remember when I was little, in their same position,” said Marengi. “Everyone just looks to have fun.”
Over 60 kids participated in this year’s summer league and it continues to grow each year. For information on how to sign your child up for next year’s league or any other leagues, visit lynnfieldma.myrec.com.
