Approximately 25 past Quaker boys basketball players showed up to reminisce on game day.
Past members of the Moorestown High School boys basketball team reunited on the court of the Moorestown Athletic Center on Saturday, Jan. 7 from 10 a.m. to noon to play in the high school’s alumni game. Although the game did not take place last year, with a new Facebook group and ongoing record of past players, two alumni hope to help maintain a stronger tradition of the game in the future.
Connor Rieger and Will McDonald, both MHS Class of 2011 graduates, began planning for the alumni game in December when they decided to create a Facebook page for the event. On the page, they explained all alumni were encouraged to invite other past MHS players to join the page and come play. Ultimately, Rieger and McDonald felt establishing a Facebook presence was the best way to ensure word of the game spread.
“It’s just good to have everyone involved in the program come out to show support for the team,” Rieger said. “It’s also great to get to see old friends and reminisce.”
Despite the morning of the alumni game bringing with it the first significant snowfall of the year, roughly 25 players who were on the MHS boys basketball team over the past 20 years came to play. Ultimately, the players were split into teams depending on which of two age groups they fell into: those who graduated in 2012 and before and those who graduated in 2013 through the present.
“The alumni come back because they enjoy playing basketball and catching up with the guys that some of them haven’t seen since high school,” Shawn Anstey, current head coach of the MHS boys basketball team, said.
Helping the men to differentiate teammates from opponents, the high school basketball team donated MHS alumni basketball game shirts to the players, paid for by the team’s fundraising account. The younger players were given black shirts to wear and the older players were given grey and white shirts, and Anstey provided assistance by refereeing the game.
Held in the MAC’s Isenberg gym, which MHS athletic director Neil Rosa made available for the game’s use, the stands were filled with current high school players who stayed after their practice, friends and family. Additionally, the date for the game was meant to coincide with the winter breaks of past players who are away at college to bring out the more recent graduates.
“[This game is] important to me because this is the only chance I have to see most [of my former players] at the same time,” Anstey said. “Everyone is busy with college and jobs, and this is a good way to get them back on the court and to have my current team see the guys come back and have fun.”
Although by the game’s conclusion the older players won by a score of 93–80, there was no prize awarded to the winning team. Instead, all of the participating players came out to reminisce on their high school basketball days while having fun and leaving with community-wide bragging rights.
“We had a few of the older guys come out to show the young guys how to play,” Anstey joked.
All in good fun, Rieger, McDonald and Anstey hope to be able to continue this tradition next year with an even greater turnout.
