Wolcott High hosted the first Lady Eagles Basketball Jamboree on Saturday. (Palladino/RA)
By JOE PALLADINO
WOLCOTT — A preseason basketball event made its debut on Saturday, and it has already taken root to become an annual gathering.
The first Lady Eagles Basketball Jamboree tipped off at the John Morris Gymnasium at Wolcott High and it featured the host Eagles, Kaynor Tech, Northwestern Regional, and Watertown High.
The teams played six periods total, three each, 10 minutes in length, and host Wolcott won its three quarters to claim an unofficial victory.
But the good news for the day: “All three teams have committed to return next season,” said Wolcott first-year coach Marty DiTuccio.
“We had done this on the boys side,” said DiTuccio, who has moved to the girls side as head coach after a run as assistant with the boys, “and we found it very successful to have three teams in here that, normally, you don’t see until later in the season. But, primarily, instead of a scrimmage against one team, we thought it would be great to give the girls a look at different teams.”
DiTuccio said that the Highlanders, Panthers, and Indians jumped at the chance to compete, and before the teams left the gym on Saturday, the school’s committed to attend again in 2017.
“We had a good crowd, four good teams, and it was an exciting experience for them,” DiTuccio added.
The game scores:
Watertown 9, Kaynor Tech 5
Wolcott 13, Northwestern 12
Wolcott 14, Watertown 9
Kaynor Tech 10, Northwestern 10
Watertown 10, Northwestern 8
Wolcott 20, Kaynor Tech 7