The 13th Annual DARE Benefit Basketball Game was held on November 7th in the North Schuylkill High School Gym. Five student teams squared off against each other and against a Police Team, a business sponsor team, and a Faculty team. This year the theme for the evening was “DARE Goes Retro.” The team names were The Mustangs (Ringtown High School,) The Blue Aces (Girardville High School,) The Wolverines (Butler Township,) The Mounties (Conyngham Township High School,) The Mountaineers (Frackville High School,) and The Black Diamonds (Ashland High School.) These schools are the schools that joined together to make up the North Schuylkill School District. The teams for the 13th Annual Game were composed of students from North Schuylkill Junior/Senior High School, and Cardinal Brennan Junior/Senior High School.

In the first game the Mustangs (students in grades 9 through 12) played the “Top Guns,” a team of law enforcement officers from the Butler Township Police, the Frackville Police, the Ashland Police, the Pennsylvania State Police, the County Sheriffs Office, and the County Juvenile Probation Department. The game came down to the wire and a buzzer beater by the Mustangs put the game into overtime. The Mustangs prevailed in overtime, defeating the Top Guns 38 to 35.

In the second game The Wolverines (Eighth Graders) played the Blue Aces (Seventh Graders.) The game was nip through four quarters, and the Wolverines finally pulled it off winning by a score of 32 to 24. This game is known as “The Pizza Bowl” because the winning team is treated to a pizza and bowling party at a later date at the Ashland Elks. The seventh grade has never defeated the eighth grade, but this year the seventh graders had the eight graders sweating.

In the third game The Black Diamonds (9th through 12th grade students) played “The DARE Devils,” a team of local DARE sponsors. Businesses represented on the DARE Devils were: The Breakfast Nook, Devito’s Italian Eatery, Tri-State Envelope, Orths Trophies, Payne’s Flowers, Paul Chevy Olds Pontiac, Bracey Pharmacy, Concept Medical, Danny’s Drive In, Attorney Mark Semanchik, and Troup Demolition. This game was a hard fought contest, and after three and a half quarters of a see-sawing score, the DARE Devils won out in the end by a score of 45 to 39.

In the fourth and final game, The Mountaineers (9th through 12th grade students) battled the Mounties (the Faculty) for four very physical quarters. At the final buzzer, the game was tied 39 to 39. In the overtime period, the Mountaineers started strong, but the Mounties tied it up once again. In the second overtime period, it became a matter of pride, and both teams fought hard, but the Mounties pulled it out with a score of 56 to 52.

Approximately 99 DARE Graduates in grades 7 through 12 played in the games, and a dedicated group of students on the DARE Advisory Board sold tickets, distributed team shirts, and helped to ensure that the night ran smoothly. In addition to the DARE Graduates who played on the student teams, DARE Graduates were also represented on the adult teams! Ed Ashfield is a student at Misrecordia and he works in the summer and on breaks for the Paul Dealership in Ashland. Ed came home for the evening to play on the DARE Devils team. Joe Billus is a DARE Graduate who works for Concept Medical, and he also played for the DARE Devils. Playing for the Top Guns were DARE Graduates Deputy Keith Berezwick, and Patrolman Shawn Butler. Playing for the Mounties were DARE Graduates and current North Schuylkill Faculty and Staff members Bonnie Susan, Rick Leibig, Siobhan Wagner, Larry Bennett, Renata Luciani, and Patty Dougherty. All of the aforementioned are DARE Graduates from North Schuylkill, Immaculate Heart, or Holy Family Elementary. The DARE games can only be successful when we have the support of the current students, and this years games were extremely successful because we had the support of many DARE Graduates who are still in high school, and the support of many who went through the DARE Program as far back as 1991! The proceeds from the games are donated to the libraries that serve the students in the North Schuylkill School District. The DARE Program will be forwarding $300.00 checks to the Libraries in Ringtown, Frackville, and Ashland.