ON SATURDAY
AND SUNDAY last April 24 and 25, the Haigis Mall in front of
the Fine Arts Center looked like a carnival site: green-and-white
striped tents, semi trailers parked on the grass, costumed mascots
bearing balloons, children jumping up and down on colorful inflated-rubber
play structures. In fact, however, the mall was the centerpiece
for Haigis Hoopla IX: a massive concentration of three-on-three
basketball games contested in intense earnestness by boys and
girls age ten and under (the "Wee Wonders" division)
to men and women the age of well, gray hair and knee-braces (who
are graciously accorded the title "Masters").
Put 460 teams approximately 2,000 players together for a weekend with over 990 games and around 14,000 spectators, and you come up with an astronomical number of slam-dunks, high-fives, shouts, cheers, and sprains not to mention a daunting logistical challenge. Meeting this challenge lining up sponsors, marketing the event, setting up hospitality, handling the media, running tournament operations, managing the dozens of volunteers, administering first aid was a corps of more than thirty UMass graduate and undergraduate students in the sports management department. According to grad student Mike Sarro, whose assignment was marketing, the two-day event is part of a yearlong effort that gives students a sustained dose of real-life experience. "We're accountable to both participants and sponsors, so it's important that operations run smoothly."
This year operations were especially challenging because of the heavy rain Friday night, said senior Sabrina Sherman, who took part in volunteer management. Some thirty-two half-courts had to be laid out in parking lots near the mall, but as the lots emptied Friday evening volunteers were confronted with falling rain and damp surfaces upon which to paint boundaries. "We were back here at 5:30 this morning," Sherman said on Saturday. She was sipping hot chocolate to ward off the chill, for while it was a bright day almost too bright, with a harsh, low glare that made baseball caps prized commodities a cold wind blew briskly. The temperature may have been just right if you were hustling through several thirty-minute games, but the volunteer referees and scorekeepers were grateful for the polar-fleece jackets provided by New Balance, the event's major sponsor.
ENLISTING SPONSORS
is an important part of the effort. Sponsorships and player fees
not only finance the entire non-profit event but benefit the
Erik Kjeldsen Scholarship Fund, which honors a former professor
in the department by providing financial assistance to two sports
management undergrads each year. As junior Peter Bang explains,
the department's Sport Event Management course begins each fall
with practice in getting commitments of cash and trade from businesses
and organizations. The students were successful in signing up
sponsors ranging from major sports equipment manufacturers to
local auto dealers and restaurants. The course continues in the
spring with instruction on organization and operations. Over
the past nine years students and their faculty "moderators"
this year, professors Jay Gladden and Tim DeShriver have built
on past experience and successes, growing the event from just
over 100 teams in its first year to more than 450 in the past
two years.
According to department head Lisa Pike Masteralexis '87, Haigis Hoopla is a chance for students "to apply what they have learned in the classroom on the campus, in the community, and in the sports business world." She contends that the event makes students more marketable to event management and sports sponsorship organizations a contention borne out by the many alumni formerly associated with it. To name just a few, these include Bruce Cook `91G, president of GoodSports, who went from work with the U.S. Olympic Committee to founding his own sports marketing firm; Nancy Gonsalves `92G, who's now a manager for the Paralympic Games; Leslie (Keast) Wurzberger `92G, director of marketing and promotions at the University of Washington; Joelle Dold `96G, promotions coordinator for the Ladies Professional Golf Association; and Kelli Bartlett `98G, sponsorship and sports marketing specialist at Compaq Computers.
Aside from providing students with experience that pays off on the job, Haigis Hoopla affords many area residents, as well as people from as far away as Los Angeles, an opportunity to compete to show off their game or just plain play. No matter a person's level of ability, everyone is sure to find a division in which to compete. In addition to the "Wee Wonders" and "Masters" divisions, there are slots for young peoples' teams up through high school. For those over eighteen and with advanced skills, there are divisions such as the "Hot Shots." For those over eighteen and not so skilled, or just over the hill, there are the "Weekend Warriors" and "Couch Potatoes" divisions. A "Chariots of Fire" division gives wheelchair-athletes a chance to compete. Other competitions and activities come with the package, such as the kids interactive area, the slam-dunk contest, and the three-point shootout.
TWELVE-YEAR-OLD
Jenny Tiberio of Amherst, daughter of Larry Tiberio '72, was
there for her third Hoopla. Even though one of her teammates
was ill, and she'd be playing two on three, she wouldn't miss
her chance for the world. With a registration fee of only $17
for a guaranteed three games over two days, she and her family
thought the opportunity for healthy activity, competition, and
fun was good value. As Jenny and her friend warmed up with girls
from another team, they, like the people of all ages who were
playing nearby, were blissfully unaware of all the work that
had gone into ensuring the event went off smoothly.
At a nearby court, sport management undergrad Marcus Myrick, a junior in an orange shirt and striped bib who'd volunteered to ref some games, watched a group of "Wee Wonder" boys warm up. The older teams can request a ref if they wanted one, Myrick explained, but most elect to play the kind of schoolyard ball where fouls are rarely called and the weight and strength to hold your ground in the low post is as valuable as shooting ability.
The younger division games are all refereed. "We want them to understand and follow the rules," said Myrick. He looked at the pint-sized kids, who could only dream of slam-dunks, and grinned. "Mostly, though, we just let `em play."
Leslie Wolfe `80G
