Today is Friday, May 18, 2012
Today is Friday, May 18, 2012
Bud Casey might be fictional, but Team Bud Casey’s Dodgeball 2010 Championship is very real.
In the final game, the all-senior team defeated the freshman Alto Boys Club (ABCs) 3-0 to cap a memorable last day of the tournament. Team Bud Casey consisted of seniors Lucas Carosella, Michael Cramer, David Ilishah, Sammy Meckler, Kalyn Nakano and Sean Small.
Team Bud Casey, named for a fictional student who allegedly has the most points in the school’s basketball history, used its experience to defeat the younger, upstart freshman team.
“We didn’t want to underestimate them, so we just wanted to not be overaggressive,” Sammy said. “Just take them out. Show no mercy—just beast it up.”
Unlike those of Team Bud Casey, the ABCs members showed their inexperience by playing too aggressively. They repeatedly attempted to catch difficult throws and ventured close to the half way line, making them easy targets.
“We did all right, [but] we could have done better,” ABCs member freshman Conrad Rodgers said. “We were tired, but there is no excuse for losing.”
After several major upsets, including defeating last year’s champion the Cougar Hunters, the ABCs rode a wave of momentum and confidence into the final game. However, in the first two games, Bud Casey routed them by taking advantage of their aggressive play.
Senior Michael Cramer and Senior Sean Small combined to eliminate Conrad for the final out in the first game, which lasted a minute. The second game was more competitive, as the teams traded hits and catches, including two back-to-back snags by Michael and freshman Steven McClain. But as the final ABCs player, Steven failed to corral a hard thrown ball by Michael and Bud Casey took a comfortable 2-0 lead.
“Dominating the ABC’s in the finals was really a sweet victory,” Sean said. “No contest, they didn’t put up a fight at all.”
The third game did prove to be a “fight” though. With 2:30 remaining, the ABCs calmed down and nearly defeated Bud Casey. At one point it was all six Bud Casey members against solely Steven and freshman Mac Kliman. Yet in just 13 seconds of focused catches and rapid fire throws the two managed to elimate 5 Bud Casey members, with help from freshman Dimitri Trembois on the last catch.
However, David, the last Bud Casey player on the court, thwarted the ABCs hopes for a comeback with a clutch catch of his own. Lucas entered to even the sides, and together the two eliminated the final ABC members. With a 3-0 lead and less than 20 seconds remaining, Team Bud Casey began to celebrate their championship as the clock expired on the 2010 dodge ball season.
“[Winning] feels like you are better than everyone else,” Sammy said. “You might feel that way normally, but it feels even better now because it’s true. We are better than everyone else.”
The team was confident in its abilities all tournament, and never doubted that the Championship would be theirs.
“I felt like the win was bound to happen,” Lucas said. “Seeing us play, seeing our spirit, we had good teamwork and strong players. We just rocked.”
See http://vimeo.com/12060899 for the video of the game.
