Torn

Well, tonight is the Regional Championship game down in Canton and I find myself in a bit of a pickle.  Its something that I realized a few weeks back might happen, but the moment of truth has come.  Its confession time though.

I graduated from Berlin Hiland High School.

The passion that many of you all feel for all things Windham Bomber-ish, I feel for my beloved Hiland Hawks.  The ground that the late Perry Reese walked on is nearly holy in the area where I grew up.  Basketball is king.  The high school was able to build an entire arena for its basketball teams that cost over 1.5 million dollars solely on private donations.  There are 1600 seats in the gym, of which 900 belong to season ticket holders.  People put directives in their Wills as to where those season tickets go.  Last I heard the waiting list for season tickets was nearly seven years.

Put simply, we eat, sleep, and breathe basketball.  The girls basketball team played yesterday in the State Semifinal game, beating Fort Loramie 49–47.  They play East Canton for the State Championship on Saturday. 

This is a huge weekend for people in East Holmes.  Even the Amish are going crazy, as they always do.  They love their basketball too.  You can’t drive a half mile without seeing a sign in support of the Hawks, stretching to the county border and beyond. 

I expect the game between Windham and Hiland to be an excellent game, as both teams have similar styles.  Unity and team play is emphasized very strongly on both teams.  Neither team could be characterized as dirty.  They can both put up big numbers very quickly.  It should be a great game to watch no matter who wins.

I’m torn.

Admit it though, if you lived in Berlin and you were watching the local team play Windham, wouldn’t you be too?