Senior Night at Old Rochester Regional High School made Monday’s 42-35 Unified Basketball victory against Fairhaven even more special because of how the Bulldogs won.
ORR’s three seniors, Traeh Carrington, Jake Newton and John Butler, all contributed, and Player of the Game Thomas Jupin, an athlete, scored two baskets for a career-high four points. “He was hustling all game long,” said Coach Emma Fenton.
Carrington, an athlete, scored eight points, and as partners, Newton and Butler pulled 20 rebounds apiece.
“They provided plenty of opportunities for our athletes to score, which is awesome,” said Fenton, emphasizing fairness and meaningful involvement at the heart of Unified sports. “We want everyone to have a role when they’re out on the court. Even if an athlete is super skilled, they can take shots – we encourage them – but pass to their teammates. We don’t like to run up the score.”
ORR’s Unified basketball team is comprised of nine “athletes,” six on-court “partners” and a manager who tallies statistics.
“We actually started Unified Phys. Ed. at ORR this year,” said Fenton. “There’s partners and there’s athletes. They get the experience and it’s more comfortable … and it’s attainable and it’s awesome.”
New to ORR and the Bulldogs’ Unified program, Fenton had a feeling Unified would be part of her new teaching career. The 2023 Bridgewater State University graduate played basketball for the Bears, so she knows the sport.
“We did Unified sports at my high school (Bourne),” she said, noting the support she received to take over as Unified coach with the role open. “They were all like, ‘You have to do it, you have to do it.’ I knew coming into it that I wanted to do it.”
As the teacher in ORR’s Transition Skills program for ORR graduates ages 18-22, Fenton has quickly gained camaraderie with the Unified athletes and partners. The students in Transitional Skills also participate in the Bulldog Brew beverage operation for students and staff.
“It provides more skills for them when they leave here,” said Fenton.
The Unified season began with practice on September 11, and the Bulldogs have won all four of their games.
“We really like to hit the ground running when school starts,” said Fenton of her group that plays or practices twice per week. “We have a very competitive crew this year.”
ORR has two more South Coast Conference games remaining on the schedule, Monday, Oct. 30, at Joseph Case High School in Swansea and at Fairhaven on Wednesday, November 1. The Bulldogs will compete in a postseason jamboree with Special Olympics Massachusetts in November, playing short games with several teams.
The game everyone looks forward to against local fire and police is scheduled for Tuesday, November 21, 6:30 pm in the ORRHS gym. A suggested donation of $5 for students and $10 for adults would help raise funds to outfit the team.
“I really want us to have those same opportunities,” said Fenton. “The officers we have at the school, Officer (Linera) Lima and Officer (Adalberto) Cardoso, they have the best relationships with the kids.”
Fenton says coaches’ meetings with Special Olympics Massachusetts has helped drive home the message of the importance of Unified basketball – meaningful involvement.
“They don’t just want the athletes to be handed their opportunities, they want them to earn them,” she said. “Special Olympics Massachusetts has been awesome. They’re really big on making everything the same across the board, which has been good.”
By Mick Colageo