If you want to be a baller, you need to work on your game in the off-season. The campers at Goss Park’s summer basketball camp know that well, as do the camp counselors, four-year WLC standout Ally Schwab and her younger brother, rising freshman Jack. Since I fancy myself a bit of a shooter, we put our heads together and decided to to spice up the summer with a three-point shootout – campers versus counselors versus Sports Editor.

We stuck to NBA three-point contest rules – 25 shots, five apiece from the corners, wings and top of the key. The top two shooters after one round would advance for a final shootout. 

Right out of the gate, camper William Durso set the pace, hitting six threes. His sister, Kiley, and fellow camper Mariah Littlefield both put up a good fight as well, improving steadily as they worked their way around the arc.

“[The campers] did awesome,” Ally said. “I mean, William beat me, and the others almost tied me, so they did pretty good. They were troopers.”

Ally nearly matched her high school career total in just one round, hitting four, but Jack proved to be the finest shooter in the first round, starting out hitting the first six in a row, including five straight from the corner. 

“In the first round, I was hot,” Jack said. He finished with 11 right out of the gate.

I went last, and started cold, missing all of my shots from the baseline (to be fair, there was some solid defense being played by a hanging tree branch). After that, though, I found a groove, and needing only seven to advance, I knocked down eight. It was down to Jack and I for a final shootout – or so we thought.

We went around the arc again. Jack hit ten, and so did I, my potential gamewinner rattling out. For the tie-breaker, we switched it from 25 shots to 10. Jack hit five to set the bar. I don’t know whether I got tired or just went cold, but my first five shots were misses, and I found myself at the top of the key needing to hit every remaining shot to stay alive.

I thought back to my rec ball days. Beaver Jutras taught us to shoot by imagining that we were reaching up to the top of the fridge and dipping our hand into the cookie jar – the perfect form and followthrough. I dug deep and fired away. Swish. Swish. A rattler that fell in the hoop. Swish. I hit the final shot, falling away, willing it in with body language.

“You’re a good shooter – you hit those last five in a row, it was crazy,” Jack said.

“You’re a good shooter – from the left side,” Ally clarified, emphasis on “the left side.”

That burst was my final hurrah, though, as Jack would hit five to my four in the final round and come out as the champion – hopefully, a sign of things to come for the Warriors next hoops season.

It’s safe to say the Goss Park campers are getting a good education this summer, and I learned a thing or two myself. Am I bitter about the loss? Can’t say. But hey, there’s always next summer!