DUBOIS – The 33rd annual Father Gregory Leopold Eighth Grade Girls’ Basketball Tournament will be held at DuBois Central Catholic in the Varischetti Sports Complex this Friday and Saturday.
The eight schools participating are assured of three games and include Lady Owls of Bradford, Lady Raiders of Brookville Lady Tide of Curwensville, Lady Beavers of DuBois, Lady Cardinals of DuBois Central Catholic, Lady Chucks of Punxsutawney, Lady Bulldogs of Redbank Valley and the Lady Knights of St. Stephens.
The first-round games begin on Friday at 4 p.m. with DCC versus St. Stephens, followed by Curwensville versus Brookville at 5:15p.m. and DuBois versus Punxsutawney at 6:30 p.m. The last of the first-round games begins on Saturday at 9 a.m. with Bradford versus Redbank Valley.
Second-round games will begin on Saturday at 10:15 a.m. and run through-out the day. At 7 p.m., the championship game will commence and team trophies will be given for the top two places.
The tourney, which is held each fall, is in memory of the late Father Gregory Leopold, a teacher and avid supporter of student athletics at Central prior to his untimely death in an automobile accident in 1984.
Michele Burley, administrative assistant in the elementary, said, “The tourney is a tribute to Fr. Leopold because he was a great supporter of athletics at DCC and an excellent teacher.
“One of my fondest memories is of him bringing Calculus papers to the games to correct and then dropping them all over the bleachers. He always made us smile. Fr. Leopold loved our kids.”
Athletic Director Phil Esposito said, “It is great to see a tradition and a tournament last for 33 years. Hopefully, it will continue for many more.”
The tournament is organized and sponsored by the DCC Athletic Department, with the support of the parents of the middle school Lady Cardinals.
Concessions, T-shirts and 50/50 will be available throughout the tournament. Tickets on Friday are adults for $3 and students for $1. On Saturday, tickets will be adults for $5 and students for $2. All tickets may be purchased at the door.