Let the practices begin
Winter school sports teams return to the courts
BURRILLVILLE — There’s a rhythm to the high school sports calendar for Burrillville senior Jack Bergin and junior Wes Cournoyer.
After grinding away on the football field for the better part of four months, the duo would quickly shift their attention to the basketball court after Thanksgiving. Even though they would rarely get any time off between school and sports, the duo loved playing sports and loved being with their friends.
Their routine – just like every other American’s routine - was drastically altered in early March when the coronavirus pandemic shut everything down. The football season was postponed until “Fall 2” and basketball kept being pushed back to the point where there was a chance the sport wouldn’t be played.
But there the Broncos were Monday night at the Broncodome doing what they love to do – playing basketball. Outside of wearing masks, everything looked normal with kids taking jump shots and coach Kevin Randall and assistant Chris Marshall directing the squad through skill drills.
“Oh my God, I’ve been waiting to play a sport for so long, it’s great to get back out there,” said Cournoyer, who will likely have to pick up the scoring slack left behind by 1,000-point scorer Sam Clifford.
“We don’t even care that it’s a different season and it’s shorter, we’re just happy to finally be able to play a sport with each other again.”
“We’ve been playing at outdoor courts and stuff, but it’s just great to get back into the gym with my friends and feel like it’s normal,” Bergin said. “I don’t think any of us have seen each other outside of our close friend groups since the last school year. It’s just cool to be back with everyone and back with the team. The masks are tough, but whatever we have to do to play, I’ll do it. This is my senior year and I want to be able to play.”
Just a few miles up Route 102, the Mount St. Charles boys basketball team was huddled in the gym’s atrium getting their temperature checked be head coach Henry Coleman while the girls team finished up their first practice of the new season. While Bergin and Cournoyer haven’t played a school sport since February, Mount senior captain Jack Bennett played one game for the soccer team.
Bennett, who only played once because of an injury, was happy to finally be on the court after the start of the season was pushed back a few times.
“It feels pretty good to be back and it’s been way too long,” said Bennett, who would’ve had an outside shot at reaching the 1,000-point plateau during a normal 25game season. “We need to start building the chemistry so we can have a good season. It’s a compressed season so we need to be really focused in practice and make sure we know the plays and are getting better.”
The challenge for kids this season will be playing basketball in masks in front of limited – or in most cases – no crowds. The challenge for coaches is even more daunting. Randall and Coleman both have time-tested systems to build winning teams, but they’re going to have to adapt this season.
Gone are the pregame meetings in classrooms and team-bonding activities after practice, now coaches have to break down game film with kids over Zoom calls. And, they’re going to have to play nine to 10 league games over a three-week period before the playoffs start at the beginning of the third week of February.
“We’re relegated to just being in the dome, so things are going to be a lot different and we’re just going to have to live with it,” Randall said. “We have six seniors, so we already have those bonds, but you’re going to miss the simple things like slapping hands. Coaches are going to have to figure out how you build those bonds. It’s going to be challenging but we’re going to see who steps up.”
The good news for the Broncos is they have a little more time than the Mounties to start the season. Because Johnston, who the Broncos were scheduled to play on Jan. 15, don’t start practicing until Jan. 11, Burrillville won’t begin Division II play until a trip to St. Raphael on Jan. 21.
For Mount, the start of the season is literally 10 days away because they will make the short trip down Route 146 to face Davies Tech on Jan. 15. Coleman is embracing the challenge because the alternative is not having a season at all, which is what happened in the spring when he was supposed to start his first season coaching the Mount softball team.
“As I’ve told the kids, expect the unexpected during this season and treasure every moment you’re on the court,” Coleman said. “We just need to make the best of the situation and hopefully we can make it all way through February and see the season through. At times you’re going to see some ugly basketball across the state, but we’re all in the same boat and we’re going to try to make the best of it.”