North Tonawanda Lumberjacks Basketball: Ryan Kennedy Memorial Tournament
Saturday, December 8Ryan Kennedy Memorial Tournament Dedication Posted On YouTube.Com
Please click on the headline above or on the following web address to view the tournament dedication ceremony in honor of former North Tonawanda Lumberjack basketball player, Ryan Kennedy, who died on September 28, 2006 after a battle with cancer...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4iUgv56J4A
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North Tonawanda Wins On An Emotional Night
By Jay Skurski
skurskij@gnnewspaper.com
An emotional night at North Tonawanda High School ended on a positive note Friday as the host Lumberjacks scored a 60-48 win over Newfane in the opening round of the Ryan Kennedy Memorial Tournament.
Prior to the start, the Lumberjacks had a ceremony to rename the tournament after Kennedy, a former NT player who passed away from Hodgkin’s lymphoma at the age of 23 in August 2006. Kennedy’s parents, Diane and Craig, and sister, Carly, were in attendance and spoke to the Lumberjacks in the locker room before the game.
“That gave us a boost,” NT coach Erik O’Bryan said.
The Lumberjacks used that momentum to open a 12-2 lead after the first quarter. Sophomore Aaron Davis did most of the damage for NT, scoring eight points in the opening eight minutes.
“We couldn't guard him," Newfane coach Scott Fuller said of Davis.
Newfane got back into the game in the second quarter, as senior Trey Sherrie started the stanza with six quick points, cutting the NT lead to 14-10. Davis, however, continued to carry NT, scoring his team’s first eight points of the second quarter to give him 16 in the first half.
A field goal by Newfane senior Nick Vona made the score 25-22 NT at halftime.
“I’m proud of the way our guys fought back after that start,” Fuller said.
Vona’s 3-pointer to open the second half tied the game and was the start of a back-and-forth third quarter. Newfane led by as many as four points, but back-to-back turnovers seemed to rattle the Panthers, and a 3-pointer from NT senior Mitchell Jaccarino gave NT a 38-37 lead.
The Lumberjacks then used a 9-2 run in the fourth quarter to pad the lead.
“We just kept coming,” O’Bryan said. “A year ago, we might not have been able to fight back when we were down four, but we found a way to win.”
The game was marred by an ugly incident in the fourth quarter as a skirmish for a loose ball resulted in a Newfane player leaving the bench.
An apologetic Fuller said after the game the player momentarily lost his composure, and the situation would be handled.
“I’m very sorry it happened,” the coach said.
Davis finished with a game-high 21 points, while senior Eric Fetterman had 11 off the bench and Mitchell Jaccarino added 10 for NT. Vona led Newfane with 17 points.
NT advances to face Iroquois in the championship game at 3 p.m. today. The Chiefs defeated Clarence, 55-51, in the earlier game Friday night. Iroquois is coached by Archie O’Bryan, Erik O’Bryan’s father. Newfane meets Clarence in the consolation game at 1:30 p.m. today.
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Kennedy To Be Remembered At NT Tournament
By Jay Skurski
skurskij@gnnewspaper.com
Former North Tonawanda boys basketball player Ryan Kennedy will never be forgotten by those who follow in his footsteps.
That’s because the tournament that traditionally comes at or near the beginning of the Lumberjacks’ season will now bear his name.
Former NT assistant coach Mike Miranto was instrumental in getting the annual North Tonawanda Tip-Off Tournament renamed in honor of Kennedy, who passed away in August 2006 from Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
“Ryan was a teammate and good friend of mine before he passed,” said Miranto, who’s currently an assistant men’s basketball coach at the University of Great Falls in Montana. “We wanted to do something to keep his memory alive.”
NT head coach Erik O’Bryan, who was an assistant during Kennedy’s years with the varsity, was all for the idea.
“There aren’t many people who loved basketball as much as Ryan did,” O’Bryan said. “The whole idea just seemed right.”
The tournament, which is sponsored by Budwey’s Supermarket, begins tonight with the junior varsity games, while varsity action starts Friday. Prior to NT’s varsity game, which will start about 7:30 p.m., the program will present Kennedy’s family with one of his game-worn jerseys. The Lumberjacks will also wear special warm-up shirts, all sporting Kennedy’s No. 50.
It promises to be an emotional night for the Kennedy family.
“We’re just so touched that the team would honor Ryan in this way,” Diane Kennedy said. “There’s really no way to explain how grateful we are.”
It’s fitting Kennedy would be honored at this tournament, as it’s where one of his proudest moments as a Lumberjack came. As a senior, he was selected to the all-tournament team after helping then-coach Greg Ross earn his 100th career victory at NT with a semifinals win over Starpoint. Kennedy then helped NT bounce back from a double-digit halftime deficit to beat Williamsville South in the tournament final.
“That was one of the highlights of his senior year,” Diane Kennedy said.
Kennedy worked hard after his junior year to improve his game, becoming one of the team’s most consistent performers as a senior. That year, he averaged 9.8 points and 8.2 rebounds in helping the Lumberjacks to a 14-8 mark.
His work ethic is what O’Bryan recalls fondly.
“Ryan was very much the player who would walk through snow to get to practice,” the coach said. “You could always count on him to go out and grab the tough rebound.”
Despite fighting his illness, Kennedy graduated on time from SUNY Geneseo in the spring of 2005.
“He’d come home every other week for treatment,” Diane Kennedy said. “He set goals for himself and was determined not to let his illness keep him from accomplishing them.”
O’Bryan said he’s used Kennedy’s story to explain to his players how precious life can be and how lucky they are to be healthy and playing basketball.
“He was a young man who loved this game so much, and had that and so many other things taken away from him. It’s really unfair,” O’Bryan said. “We try to let our guys know that. … They’re determined to go out there and perform well for him.”