By: Jon Stinson
Bangor– In just a few short weeks we will be in the midst of a major yearly event for thousands of Maine residents. February 15th marks the beginning of the quarter and semi finals of Maine high school basketball, the final large competition before the widely anticipated State Championship games. The various State Championship games draw players, families, and fans from around the state to three of the Maine’s major cities; Augusta, Portland, and Bangor respectively. The pilgrimages not only bring people to these meccas, but cause influxes of business as well. The large number of travelers and funds hanging in the balance cause Maine’s State Basketball Championships to be of utmost importance to many people.
The Maine Principals’ Association (MPA) is tasked with organizing high school level sporting events statewide. “The Basketball Tournament is the largest income producer the association has.” said Executive Director Dick Durost, “Most years, of the 23 activities we sponsor, only 5 to 7 bring in enough money to cover the cost of running that specific event. Income from basketball contributes heavily towards us being able to sponsor those other 16 to 18 activities.”
Recently the Maine Principals’ Association has been in the headlines regarding Maine’s dwindling school enrollments. Maine was dubbed the oldest state in the nation, resulting in an evermore decreasing number of students per class.
“As school enrollments and rural communities become smaller and smaller, that is always a concern. However, the communities of Northern Maine are
very supportive of their student athletes.” laments Durost.
Last year Maine’s Basketball Championships brought over 40,000 paying attendees to Bangor alone. These fans are often in the Bangor area for the weekend, and often spend large sums of time and money in Bangor’s retail market.
Dealing with such a flow of sports fans into a venue the size of the Cross Insurance Center comes with a variety of logistical challenges for tournament organizers. MPA assigns site directors to each location to handle scheduling and staffing, while officials are assigned by the Commissioner of Basketball Peter Webb. Some scheduling is even finalized as late as 24 hours before the event begins. “Things usually go smoothly unless severe weather forces postponement and rescheduling of games which is difficult in terms of the few open time slots in the master schedule.” said Durost regarding last minute schedule changes.
Nationwide high school sports have dealt with a decrease of volunteer officials. Surveys have deduced that the largest cause is unsportsmanlike conduct from coaches, athletes, and largely fans. “While sportsmanship is always a concern, we require each school playing to have a school administrator in attendance working with the Tournament staff to ensure proper behavior.” said Durost. The MPA has joined many national principals’ associations across the nation in addressing this conduct.
The Maine Basketball State Championship begins on March 1st in Augusta, and concludes with tournaments in Portland and Bangor on March 2nd.
