Bocce Ball to make debut at Central Mountain High School Wednesday; public invited
THIS EVENT HAS BEEN POSTPONED. WE WILL RE-POST WHEN A NEW DATE HAS BEEN SET.
BALD EAGLE TOWNSHIP, PA – Not even COVID could keep Central Mountain’s newest sport from coming to the fore and Wednesday of this week will be a special day.
The Keystone Central School Board in November of 2020 gave its approval to a unique new sport, establishment of the Central Mountain Unified Indoor Bocce Team. A three-game schedule had been set up for last winter but the pandemic interceded and the program delayed a year, but now it’s ready to go.
With funding provided by Special Olympics, the program is for both Special Olympic athletes and non-Special Olympic students.
The public is invited to the first Central Mountain competition, hosting Bellefonte High School at 4 p.m. Wednesday in the Wildcat gymnasium; admission is free (the first contest will also be streamed on therecord-online).
The Record recently presented CM officials with some questions, looking for answers to this new opportunity for the youth of the community:
How did it get into the high schools? Do we know how many teams there are?
Bocce is an Italian game. The basic principle of the sport is to roll a bocce ball closest to the target ball, which is called a palina. Bocce as a Special Olympics sport provides people with special needs the opportunity to have social contact, develop physically and to gain self-confidence. Next to soccer and golf, bocce is the third most participated sport in the world.
How did this all come about?
Last November, faculty member Len Rutecki presented the idea to the school board, and KCSD accepted the program for the 2020-21 school year. Unfortunately, due to COVID-19, last year’s season was suspended. We are excited to hold our first annual season this winter.
How is the central mountain team chosen?
We selected a team based on interest, and that students were not participating in another winter sport. There is a minimum of three players with intellectual disabilities and three without. The total roster can include up to 8 per one team. We hope to grow to two teams in the future.
What is the relationship among the students with one another?
Our team has had an excellent relationship with one another so far. Most of the students already work with each other in our adapted physical education class and have built camaraderie. They are looking forward to competing and having fun while doing so. We at Central Mountain High School are incredibly excited about the opportunity for these students and cultivating the spirit of inclusion in our school.
Should there be cheering from spectators?
Yes, absolutely! It will be an excellent atmosphere for all students and families on Wednesday.
Information on the area schedule and state-wide set-up below:
| Visitors | Home | Start Time | ||||
| 12-Jan | Bellefonte | Central Mountain | 4:00 | |||
| 14-Jan | State College | Bald Eagle Area | 4:00 | |||
| 18-Jan | Central Mountain | State College | 4:30 | |||
| 21-Jan | Huntingdon | Bald Eagle Area | 4:00 | |||
| 26-Jan | Bellefonte | Huntingdon | 4:00 | |||
| 4-Feb | Huntingdon | State College | 4:30 | |||
| 7-Feb | Bald Eagle Area | Bellefonte | 4:00 | |||
| 11-Feb | Central Mountain | Bald Eagle Area | 4:00 | |||
| 17-Feb | State College | Bellefonte | 4:00 |
State Qualifier Group League Groupings Number of Schools Slots 1 (Bradford/Tioga) (Potter/McKean) 8 1 2 Pittsburgh 8 1 3 (Columbia/Northumberland) (NEPA) 8 1 4 (Centre/Clinton/Huntingdon) (Clearfield) 9 1 5 (Blair) (Cambria/Somerset/Bedford) (Westmoreland) 12 1 6 Beaver 12 1 7 Delaware 13 1 8 Montgomery/Bucks 14 1 9 Butler/Lawrence/Mercer 15 1 10 (Berks) (Chester) (Lancaster/York) 17 2 11 Allegheny County 16 2 12 Mid-Penn 18 2 Wild Card All regions with one slot – Second highest placement team with an LOI would be eligible for random wild card drawing. 1
