Old vs. young. Master vs. apprentice. Student vs. teacher. This classic battle is played out each year in the student-teacher basketball game.
The student team was led by girls’ basketball players Emily Esposito and Logan Battle. They lead a squad with upwards of 20 student members. Due to the large amount of players, it was difficult to keep playing time even and many students didn’t get in until the third quarter. The team was lead by Divya Goel and Tyler Basse, both former Spartan ballers.
The faculty squad was coached by Lady Spartans Nora Osei and Emily Esau. The team was lead by tech Ed teacher and lax coach Scott Setter as well as tech Ed teacher John Alukonis and German teacher Chris Trimble. Principal Wardinski, a former high school basketball player himself, also suited up, knee braces and all. The amount of talent on the squad surprised many students. “The staff was much better than I thought they would be,” said senior Divya Goel.
The teachers got off to a hot start as the students struggled to figure out their lineup and took a commanding lead into halftime. But near the end of the third quarter, the students cut the lead to five after a 6-0 led by Goel, a former Varsity starter. But in the fourth quarter, the faculty pulled away by playing clutch defense and shooting down the stretch, pulling away for a 52-46 victory.
“We got off to a quick start,” said AD Andy Muir. “But the students were in a bit better shape than us and were able to make it a closer game.
Win or lose, the staff was most likely just happy to escape without any major injuries. Anytime you have a wide range of ages, the likelihood for injury is increased, especially when both teams are engaged in such an aggressive game.
“Next time, I hope the students will take it easy with the rough fouls,” said German teacher Herr Trimble.
At halftime, our award winning dance team performed as a warm up for their competition the next day at American University.
“It was nice to see some of my students perform,” said Trimble. “I hadn’t gotten a chance to see them before.”
While the staff game lacks the intensity of other high school varsity games, it is a fun experience for everyone involved and seems to be popular based on attendance to the game.
“It’s good to see so many people coming out to the game,” said Muir. “It really shows our school spirit.”
