Gavin O’ Keefe gets welcomed to the club at last year’s tourney. (John Fisken photos)
Jason McFadyen, still poster-worthy after all these years.
Ten days until things get real.
Alumni from Coupeville, Oak Harbor and South Whidbey are expected for the annual Tom Roehl Roundball Classic, set for Dec. 26 from 10:30-6:00 in the Coupeville High School gym.
The event raises money for scholarships given to local students by the foundation run by the legendary former coach’s family.
Roehl was an assistant football coach at CHS and helped run the Central Whidbey Youth Athletic Association for two decades before his passing in 2003.
The tourney has six teams currently registered, with at least two more on the cusp of joining the fray.
Red Pride (anchored by Mike Vaughn and Scott Stuurmans), The Coupeville Cows (featuring a collection of Shermans and Bagbys) and Central Ballers (led by CHS boys’ JV basketball coach Dustin Van Velkinburgh) will all be returning.
Tourney director Noah Roehl has also pulled together two coups.
The first is the return of Pete Petrov, standout former Wolf point guard, who is returning to make his tourney debut with the Red Pride.
Will it be enough to lift Red Pride back into the title picture?
After winning three straight titles, the Pride fell last year, with the Cows, led by tourney MVP Jason Bagby, beating the Central Ballers in the final.
The second coup is getting a team of relatively younger players to take a chance on making a run at the “old school” legends who have held court the last couple years.
The new squad, made up of players from 2010-2015, will feature Joel and Tim Walstad, among others.
The tourney will kick off with seeding play at 10:30, with the tournament round set tentatively for 2 and the championship game at 4:45.
A popular three-point shooting contest, which debuted last year, will go between the opening rounds.
The Round-Ball Classic helps to fund two scholarships, one which goes to a CHS grad and one to a graduate from South Whidbey High School.
Community support is provided by Harada Physical Therapy, Island Periodontics, Cascade Custom Homes, Jason Joiner with Windermere Commercial and DCG Engineering.
Admission to the tourney is free, but donations may be made to help the foundation’s work.
For more info, pop over to:
Coupeville Sports 