By Christine M. Quirk — Christine@concordbridge.org
When the Concord-Carlisle team entered the Acton-Boxborough gym, their opponents applauded.
So it goes in the world of Unified Basketball, a program pioneered by Special Olympics in which athletes with and without intellectual disabilities train and play together.
“I’ve done team sports, and everyone’s always very respectful, but in Unified Basketball, it’s kind of like a friendship,” junior Elise McMorrow said. “It’s like mutual respect, I guess, for each other. Everyone’s very helpful and understanding, and everyone wants to celebrate the athletes.”
CCHS also has a Unified Track team, which introduced juniors Orin Lewis and Sadie Kokoszka to the initiative.
“That got us into the Unified program, and we met a lot of the athletes, and then we decided to do Unified Basketball,” Sadie said. “It’s a great way to spend time with more of the athletes and stay within the program.”
Opportunity for all
The Unified Basketball team is co-ed and has 20 players. It functions the same way any high school sport would, with regular practices, coaching, and games. Three athletes and two mentors are on the court, and the team competes against other schools in regulation games. Though there is some flexibility as the mentors coach and support the athletes during play, the usual rules and scoring apply.
“We sub in more often, so everyone gets a chance to play,” Orin said. “Usually, the athletes stay on the court longer than the mentors.”
Tom Keane, a special education teacher at CCHS, has coached the team for three years. He pointed out Emerson Bartlett, who spends his weekends practicing his shots and “honing his craft.”
Emerson didn’t want to give up the ball to talk to a reporter, but he did say his favorite part of being on the team was his friends. That’s one of the goals of Unified sports — to allow all students to have that experience.
“Sports have always been such a big part of my life, and I love being able to share [that] with people who might not normally get opportunities to,” senior Phoebe Lewis said. “I think I make my closest friends, I challenge myself, and I grow the most as a person when I’m on a sports team.”
Bonds on and off the court
Keane said the program is about more than sinking three-pointers. It helps promote inclusion and understanding, bolsters social development, and “fosters productive citizenship,” he said.
“Unified players develop friendships and social connections, breaking down barriers and stereotypes,” Keane said in an email.
The athletes and mentors form real connections that follow them off the court and into the school.
“I see the kids in the halls at school, and this integrates them into the mainstream of school itself,” senior Aaron Joncas said. “I really like that aspect of it.”
CCHS won its game, 58-34, but every point, on both sides, was celebrated — which is typical in a Unified game.
“It’s a great way to involve the community,” junior Gracie Garofalo said. “Our game last week was at CC, and the whole football team came. We had some volleyball players, field hockey players, and everyone’s … celebrating everyone. It just creates a really good environment.
If you watch the athletes’ faces, they’ll immediately light up after they score and everyone cheers for them.”
For Phoebe, the team has brought her camaraderie and insight.
“I’ve played sports my whole life. I’ve always been part of youth sports and club sports. I’ve always taken that for granted, I would say,” she said.
“And honestly, while some may say I’m helping [the athletes,] I believe that they are helping me a lot, too. They remind me how to enjoy simple things in life and to not take things for granted. And they’re always so positive and inspiring that it pushes me to new limits as well.”
