Staff report

Dasia Elder, a 5th-grader at North Rowan Elementary School, returned to defend her title
and won the girls’ 10-11 age group division at the Salisbury Elks Lodge 699 and Salisbury
Parks and Recreation free throw contest, last Saturday, at Hall Gym.

Close to 30 youth, ages 8-13 years old, participated in the annual event, where players shoot to score as many free throws in 25 attempts.
Elder scored 13-of-25 free throw attempts and will advance to the district competition on
Jan. 27 in Winston Salem. First-place winners, also advancing were:
Kimmy Kelly (girls’ 8-9), Rachel McCullough (girls’ 12-13), Knowledge Lawson (boys’ 8-9), Simon Mueller (boys’ 10-11) and Jalen Chunn (boys’ 12-13).
Liz Tennent, event coordinator, was very impressed with the turnout from players,
families and volunteers.
“We more than doubled our participation from last year and I was especially pleased to
see that youth from 16 local schools chose to participate, especially since it was a
holiday weekend,” said Tennent. “Families and volunteers were great. The stands were full, and we even added another set of bleachers for family and friends to enjoy the contest.”
Kenny Martin, trustee of Elks Lodge 699, is a veteran volunteer of the Hoop Shoot
event and served as one of the referees on Saturday.
“As the numbers grow each year, the competition gets stronger,” said Martin. “The kids have good skills and form. My wife, Debbie, and I love helping with this event. It’s fun and exciting.”
There was a triple tie-breaker in the boys’ 8-9 division and McCullough, an 8th
grade student on Sacred Heart’s varsity basketball team, hit 21-of-25 free throws.
“Our local event is part of the National Elks Foundation Competition,” added Martin. “Perhaps, one of our winners will compete in the national finals on April 21 in Chicago!”
But the local winners will first have to shoot through the district, state and regional events.
Local Hoop Shoot winners were presented trophies and all participants received a
Certificate of Achievement and a free Hoop Shoot bag filled with information and treats
from the Salisbury Elks and Salisbury Parks and Recreation.