Elks hold ‘Hoop Shoot’

    SCARBOROUGH – On March 28, young free-throw shooters hailing from Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont will descend on Scarborough, Maine to display their impressive skills as they compete in the regional championship of the Elks “Hoop Shoot” National Free Throw Contest.     These net-stuffing boys and girls, who already have a local, district, and state championship under the belts of their warm-up suits, face their next challenge here in Scarborough.
    With free-throw percentages that would make many in the NBA weep with envy, these talented youngsters have already proven themselves to be the standouts in a competition that started last fall with more than 3-million participants, ages 8 to 13.     Now as the top free-throw shooters from six states gather at Scarborough High School, 20 Gorham Rd, Scarborough, ME at 9:00 AM, they will continue to make news as they take all their hard work, talent, and concentration to the line.
    At stake is a chance to advance to the national finals, where just 72-participants will compete April 23-26, 2009 at the birthplace of basketball, Springfield, Massachusetts.
    Now in its 37th year, the Elks “Hoop Shoot” National Free Throw Contest, sponsored by the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, has grown into the largest co-educational sports program in the country, allowing boys and girls to compete separately in three age-groups, 8-9, 10-11, and 12-13.
    Each contest consists of 25 free throws —10 in round one, 15 in round two — with ties being resolved in 5-shot shoot-offs.
    The six regional winners from the competition in Scarborough will have a chance to stake their claim to one of six coveted spots on the Elks “Hoop Shoot” plaque in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame alongside the likes of past Elks “Hoop Shoot” champs and sports luminaries as Indiana Pacer Chris Mullin, former North Carolina State star Jennifer Howard, and former Chicago White Sox third-baseman Chris Snopek.
    The Elks “Hoop Shoot” National Free Throw Contest is entirely funded by the Elks National Foundation, the charitable arm of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks.
    Last year, the Foundation disbursed more than $13-million in support of youth programs, Veterans’ services, drug education programs, college scholarships, and aid to people with disabilities.
    The Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks of the United States of America  is  a  patriotic  and  philanthropic  fraternal organization with nearly 1-million members in more than 2,100 communities.