WHS Hoops Tournament Spotlights Breast Cancer

On Sunday afternoon, the Westborough girls’ basketball program gave area hoops fans a taste of the postseason a little early. The 10^th Annual Westborough High School Girls’ Basketball Invitational Tournament kicked off with a handful of local squads battling it out in what will be the final tune-ups before the sectional tournament brackets are announced later in the week.

While locals will be treated to some top notch girls’ high school basketball this week, they are also helping to fight one of the most deadly of diseases. Once again this year, the tournament is teaming up with the WBCA (Women’s Basketball Coaches Association) and taking part in the Play 4 Kay event, raising  money and breast cancer awareness.

The proceeds from Sunday’s games along with all donations made will go directly to the Kay Yow Cancer Research Fund. Yow was the head women’s basketball coach at North Carolina State University for 34 years, beginning in 1975. She was diagnosed with Breast Cancer in 1988 and lost her battle, succumbing to the disease in January 2009. Yow is a member of the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield.

“We’ve held this tournament under different names the past couple years, whether it’s Kay Yow Day or Play 4 Kay. It’s been terrific — all eight teams have done a great job,” said Westborough girls’ basketball head coach Scott Kittredge after his team’s contest Sunday evening. “They’re doing events like this all around the country, and it’s great that our girls get a chance to be a part of it. It’s a chance to be part of something that’s bigger than us.”

Kittredge and the Rangers are joined by seven other teams taking part in the tournament. The list of schools includes: Holy Name, Franklin, Shepherd Hill Regional, Quaboag Regional, Millbury, Doherty and Algonquin Regional.

Pink was the color of choice when entering the gymnasium Sunday as players, coaches and even fans were encouraged to wear pink in support of the fight against breast cancer. All players were presented with pink t-shirts and wore them during pregame warm-ups.

When it comes to the fight against cancer, everyone is on the same team, according to Quaboag Regional head coach Al Burton. “We’re all about the pink today. It’s something you see on television with women’s college basketball. This is a great opportunity for the girls to see what life is all about,” said Burton. “It’s a tremendous cause. It’s huge. I can think of a lot of people who have been affected by this terrible disease and it’s something we need to put a halt to immediately.”

Everybody is attempting to chip in and lend a hand. Just ask Shepherd Hill head coach Jim Hackenson. “The girls on the team went out and raised $150 on their own and the coaching staff matched it so we gave a check to the Westborough athletic director for $300,” said Hackenson. “It’s a great cause and we’re happy to be able to be a part of this tournament and help out as much as we can.”

In Sunday’s action, defending tournament champion Franklin cruised past Doherty 70-37 and Algonquin Regional downed Shepherd Hill 59-47 in the first two games respectively. In the last two contests of the afternoon Quaboag rallied late to defeat Millbury 41-36 before the day was capped by Holy Name knocking off the host Rangers 53-43.

The tournament continues today, Feb. 21 (see schedule in attached .pdf), with four more games featuring all eight teams and concludes on Friday night with the championship game.  

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter to keep up to date on the latest Westborough news, or simply hit the "like" button at the top of this page. If you'd like to receive the Westborough Patch newsletter with our top stories, click here.