UB Gets Into the Spirit at BeeBall Classic
Category: Noteworthy
Nothin’ but net: Sure, the game was just for fun, but it didn’t take long for the crowd to notice that both teams had some serious skills.
It’s not only the UB Bee who cares about his new nickname, Eubie. In front of a packed Academic Center gym on Nov. 4, students, faculty, staff and alumni witnessed the revealing of the name and participated in a bit of UB history: the First Annual BeeBall Classic, a pep rally and basketball game pitting professors and staff members against students. Could it be the start of a new campus tradition?
Following a brief ceremony announcing the name, two teams ventured onto the court, while student cheerleaders (the Buzzettes) got the crowd moving with step routines and shout-outs.
UB President Robert L. Bogomolny served as honorary referee, donning the zebra stripes and tossing up the first jump ball. The student team quickly took control of the game and showed off a few fancy moves on the court, but their faculty and staff opponents posted a solid showing throughout both 10-minute halves. Not one to be outdone, Eubie tossed commemorative T-shirts into the stands and got the fans on their feet, shaking their custom pompoms and doing the wave.
“We could not have asked for a better turnout,” says Dustin Fisher, assistant director of Campus Recreation and Wellness. “People are already talking about doing it again.”
Katie Taylor, program coordinator for the International and Multicultural Student Services Center and the event’s cheerleading coach, says it was easy to recruit the Buzzettes. “I even had a student come up to me during the rally and ask to participate,” she notes.
With a final score of 30-19 in favor of the students, a rematch seems likely. And Eubie will be there from buzzer to buzzer.
WebExtras
UB Gets Into the Spirit at BeeBall Classic
Can't get enough BeeBall? Neither can we: Check out some more photos from the event.