Wrangell’s Elks Lodge hosted its annual Hoop Shoot last Saturday. The community gym was packed with kids participating in the free throw contest, and supportive family members and friends in the bleachers. The Hoop Shoot is a yearly event hosted by Elks lodges across the country for children ages eight to 13.
Jeff Jabusch, who helped organize the event, said that each child participating in the Hoop Shoot is given 25 chances to make as many free throws as possible. The first place winners of each age category, a boy and a girl, are then given 15 more free throws. Jabusch explained that the additional shots are for state reasons, to help make sure there aren’t any ties when the Elks organization is determining which children can advance in the Hoop Shoot tournament.
There were a total of 45 children who participated in the Wrangell Hoop Shoot, 23 girls and 22 boys. There were three age categories: eight to nine-year-olds, 10 to 11-year-olds, and 12 to 13-year-olds. Alexis Easterly and Aadyn Gillen both took first place in the youngest category. In the 10 to 11-year-olds category, first place went to Alana Harrison and Cody Barnes. Lastly, Kiara and Daniel Harrison both took first place in the 12 to 13-year-olds category.
All the participants were given free basketballs, and were also invited to the Elks’ lodge for a hamburger lunch. The first, second, and third place finishers will all receive trophies during halftime at the high school basketball team’s first home game on Jan. 11. Depending on their scores, some of the children could also have the opportunity to participate in a regional contest in Vancouver, Washington, Jabusch said.
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