Aces' summer retreat

“Justin McFadden, gone—the ‘winningest’ player in Lower Merion history is out the door. JaQuan Johnson, gone—one of the best point guards in District One has left for good.” These were the disheartening words from Coach Downer to the young, mostly inexperienced team of Lower Merion Varsity Boys Basketball this past summer.

Coach Downer knew that the upcoming season had the potential to disappoint without the glue that had previously held the team together. He therefore decided to continue the tradition of a summer basketball bonding trip. In previous years, the team had traveled to Montana, California, and North Carolina. This year, the team, including Jule Brown ’15, Michael Berg ’16, Joel Dunoff ‘15, Noah Fennel ’17, Greg Foster ’18, Dion Harris ’17, Jeremy Horn ’16, Terrell Jones ’17, Zack Magill ’16, Eli Needle ’16, Steve Pendleton ’15, and Corey Sherman ’15, traveled up to Dartmouth College this summer along with coaches Kevin Grugan, Michael Lachs, Matt Schwartz, Blake Stabert, Marc Tannenbaum, and Doug Young to partake in basketball training and bonding experiences in the wilderness.

The trip started with a bang at the Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Massachu- sets, followed by some pick-up basketball at Northampton High School in Northampton, MA. The next day was filled with daunting but fulfilling team-building activities at the 30-foot high Dartmouth Ropes Course. The players learned to work together to problem solve and push past fear, the foundation of real team spirit and cohesiveness.

For the next part of the trip, the Aces ran a basketball clinic for nearly 60 kids at Marion Cross Elementary School in Norwich, VT, that benefited Coaches vs. Cancer. Then they drove up to Dartmouth for a series of games that began with a loss but was dominated by victories. The team’s unity strengthened with each game. Hopefully, the Aces’ performance at the Dartmouth team camp will be reflected in the upcoming winter season. Coach Downer certainly thinks so. “A trip like this really helps team bonding— several new players get to know each other and this new bond helps [create] greater trust on the court.”

The momentum of the team camp games helped propel the team all the way up Mount Lafayette in the White Mountains of New Hampshire in the following few days. Along the way, they stayed at the Appalachian Mountain Club’s Greenleaf Lodge, where they were stunned by beautiful views of the valley, sunset, and stars.

In the final part of the bonding experience, vans drove the Aces up to the Kennebec River in Maine for an exhilarating white water rafting experience. The last day was filled with a tour of Boston and Fourth of July fireworks on Bunker Hill.

Overall, the team really enjoyed and grew from the experience. In the words of Joel Dunoff, “No one expected how close the team would feel after the trip. We [are] comfortable around each other outside of a basketball setting and that chemistry can carry over onto the court.”

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