On Saturday, September 9th, a dozen families from our BYSC Plus programs packed their overnight bags and headed to the world famous Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Massachusetts. Our athletes started with an array of shooting challenges, showcasing their skills shooting on hoops made from peach baskets dating back to 1891 (the year basketball was invented). Our very own Vin Minotti, who received both his undergraduate and Master’s degrees from Springfield College, then led us on a personal tour of the facility where we learned about the early days of the sport as well as the many stars, coaches and broadcasters who have left their mark on the game.
Later that day, we all gathered for a dinner of pizza, drinks, board games, ice cream sundaes and lots of smiles. Sunday morning we headed north to Amherst College to meet and work out with the men’s soccer team. It was a homecoming of sorts for Danny Bernstein who served as captain of the team back in 1982. Upon arrival, participants were introduced to the long-time Head Basketball Coach (and soccer assistant coach) Dave Hixon who just happened to have been inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame earlier this year after 42 years of coaching and 826 career wins. Danny embraced his former coach with a big hug as our athletes soon realized this was the same man they had seen in videos the day before at the Hall of Fame.
After working up a sweat, scoring goals and making some impressive saves, the Amherst Soccer team escorted our players to the dining hall for a team meal. BYSC athletes entered the buffet style dining hall and one remarked that it felt a little like the chocolate factory in Willy Wonka with hundreds of options from which to choose. Amherst players and BYSC families engaged in conversation about school, food, favorite sports teams, TV shows, movies and much more. We are so appreciative of the Amherst College Men’s Soccer team and their incredible players and coaching staff. We could not have asked for a better weekend!
