[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 38 (Tuesday, March 19, 1996)]
[House]
[Pages H2461-H2462]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
BRIDGEHAMPTON KILLER BEES WIN NEW YORK STATE CLASS D BOYS BASKETBALL
CHAMPIONSHIP
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the
gentleman from New York [Mr. Forbes] is recognized for 5 minutes.
Mr. FORBES. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay a special tribute and to
congratulate the championship Bridgehampton Killer Bees for winning the
New York State Class D boys basketball championship. It is indeed a
[[Page H2462]]
momentous occasion for all of us on eastern Long Island. This is the
sixth time in 19 years, Mr. Speaker, that our beloved Killer Bees of
Bridgehampton High School are the New York State Class D boys varsity
basketball champions.
There is tremendous pride throughout eastern Long Island as we
listened over eastern Long Island radio WLNG as the Killer Bees, led by
their coach Carl Johnson, went on to victory. It is the same Carl
Johnson, by the way, as coach but formerly as a player who himself
participated in three State titles from 1979 until 1980 as a player in
Bridgehampton. The Killer Bees earned the 1996 title by defeating West
Canada Valley 51-37 last Saturday evening March 16 at the Glens Falls
Civic Center in Glens Falls, NY.
The six State championships are the most ever by a New York school,
and coach Johnson is the only person in State history, Mr. Speaker, to
win a scholastic basketball title as both a player and a coach. While
all class D schools have small enrollments, Mr. Speaker, with just 43
students, Bridgehampton High School is the smallest on Long Island and
the third smallest in the State of New York. But they well may be the
mightiest. But as coach Johnson proved, the only true measure is that
of his players' heart and determination.
Unlike larger schools with a larger pool of eager young athletes, to
build his championship 15-player squad, coach Johnson drew from a
talented pool of just 18 young men at Bridgehampton High School. The
Killer Bees were led by seniors Terrell Hopson, Nick Thomas and
Nathaniel Dent and juniors Fred Welch and Javed Khan. Among
Bridgehampton's top underclassmen is sophomore Maurice Manning who is
the team's top scorer and the most valuable player in the State Class D
tournament.
Other sophomores include Charles Furman, William Walker, Louis
Myrick, Matthew White, and Marcos Harding. Freshman players are Ronald
White, Kareem Coffey, Daniel Muller and Jemille Charlton. Carl
Johnson's top assistant coach is Bobby Hopson, and Bridgehamption's
athletic director is Mary Anne Jules.
Mr. Speaker, Bridgehamption finished the season with a 20-4 record.
Besides the New York State title, the Killer Bees also earned the
Suffolk County Class C-D championship. They went on to defeat Valhalla
in Westchester County by 67-55 in the regional finals and then
Bridgehampton went on to defeat Hermon-DeKalb 69-23 in the State
semifinals. The top high school Class D boys basketball team in New
York, our own Bridgehamption High School, was supported all season by a
legion of truly loyal fans, just about the best basketball fans in the
State.
According to one news report, a contingent of 50 hometown boosters
followed their team for the 6-hour journey 350 miles from Long Island's
South fork to Glens Falls, home of this House's chairman of the House
Committee on Rules, Jerry Solomon. At Glens Falls New York State's high
school basketball tournament was held last Saturday evening. We got to
listen over the radio as Bridgehamption was victorious.
When the coaches and players returned home, Mr. Speaker, hundreds of
their neighbors were waiting at the local high school to cheer their
conquering heroes, and thousands, as I said, followed the action on
local radio station WLNG. With multiple championships garnered on the
basketball hardwood with only minimal resources, Bridgehamption High
School's success has caught the attention of renowned academics John
Katzenbach and Douglas Smith who profiled the Killer Bees in their 1992
book, the Wisdom of Teams, published by Harvard Business School Press.
Congratulations to all the Killer Bees. May you bring back many more
State titles to our neighbors here on Eastern Long Island and
throughout Suffolk County.
[From the Newsday, Long Island March 18, 1996]
Hail, Bees!
(By Samson Mulugeta and Jordan Rau)
Marian Ashman had seen them all. For 63 years, she'd
followed the Bridgehampton Killer Bees. She'd seen the best
players on five championship teams. But on Saturday night
after traveling 350 miles to upstate Glens Falls, she saw her
team win the state championship for the first time.
As the buzzer sounded with the score of 51-37, Ashman
jumped from her seat screaming, her left arm shooting into
the air.
``When I think about the whole New York state, I start
thinking about it and I start crying,'' said Ashman, 71, as
she watched the players pile off the bus yesterday for a
victory celebration at the high school.
The team, which captured its record sixth state Class D
title, arrived in the East End village escorted by a honking
procession of fire trucks and cars.
As they turned into the high school parking lot, team
members were greeted by hundreds of cheering fans, who had
been waiting most of the afternoon for their arrival.
Senior Nick Thomas, the first off the bus, held the plaque
over his head, Stanley Cup-style. As the players stepped off
the bus they were engulfed by the chanting crowd and were
hugged by family and friends.
Thomas said the team wasn't sure what would await them.
``We didn't really know it was going to happen,'' he said at
a reception in the school, where the community feasted on
chicken, macaroni salad, cakes and soft drinks. ``Being that
our fans are who they are, we knew they would show some kind
of appreciation. It's a great feeling to experience.''
Younger fans played pickup games in the school gym while
waiting for the champions to arrive. Some said they looked
forward to having their chance to play for the school.
``This is so exciting, they hadn't done it in 10 years,''
said Chris Ranum, a 12-year-old on the junior high basketball
team. ``I just want to play on the team, we can take it every
year up to the state championship.''
The Killer Bees captured the championship by defeating West
Canada Valley of Newport, 51-37, to win the title for schools
with enrollments of less than 200. Bridgehampton, the third
smallest high school in the state, has an enrollment of 43,
and 15 of the 18 boys in the school are on the team.
It was the team's first trip to the state tournament since
1991. The team won three straight state titles from 1978 to
1980, and earned its previous state championship in 1986.
Despite its status as the Little School That Could--or
maybe because of its small size--the Killer Bees had devoted
fans. Forty-nine of them boarded a bus in the village
Saturday morning for the six-hour trip upstate.
Paul Fishburne, 46, said he had to be there to cheer on the
boys.
``You've got to be crazy to go on this trip but it's worth
it,'' he said.
For Lamont Avery, who turned 43 Saturday, it was a birthday
trip.
``I haven't been off Long Island for two years,'' he said.
For Curtis Ellis, the Bridgehampton basketball tradition is
a family affair. Ellis played on championship teams in the
early 1970s. Now his son, Terrell Hopson, is repeating the
cycle.
``From generation to generation, it goes on,'' said Ellis,
42. ``You could say the Bridgehampton Child Care Center is
our farm system. Every kid who goes there starts playing as
soon as they can walk and they grow up listening about the
legends.''
The Killer Bees perform so consistently well with minimal
resources that management gurus John Katzenbach and Douglas
Smith profiled them in their 1992 book, ``The Wisdom of
Teams,'' published by Harvard Business School Press.
``Here's a team whose members very seldom reach 6 feet and
for the most part has no superstar players,'' said Henry
Letcher, a teacher at Bridgehampton High School who helped
organize the bus trip.
``But they defy expectations just because they play
unselfishly,'' Letcher said. ``They work so hard and are so
focused on their goals.''
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