Family, friends, volunteers and well-wishers filled the George Ben Page Youth Center recently to watch as 21 finalists from 10 local schools participated in the Leroy Jeffers Memorial Hoop Shoot 38th Annual Play-off contest.
Originally, 424 students (156 girls and 268 boys) from 10 local schools took part in this year’s event. The 24 finalists (three girls and 21 boys) came together to compete for first place in each age group.
Following the contest, five first-place winners were announced, and trophies were recently presented at this year’s Hoop Shoot Awards dinner. The winners are:
Girls, Age 8-9 — Juliana Horton, Our Lady of Mount Carmel School
Boys, Age 8-9 — Blake Lee, Foothill School
Girls, Age 10-11 — no contestant
Boys, Age 10-11 — Jadin Lin, Foothill School
Girls, Age 12-13 — Cate Bishop, Foothill School
Boys, Age 12-13 — Carlos Ruvalcaba, La Patera School
The winners were eligible to compete at the Elks District contest in Santa Maria, where Juliana Horton placed third and Blake Lee placed second in their age groups.
More than 50 Elks Hoop Shoot volunteers conducted the preliminary contests at 10 local schools, donating 86 volunteer hours of time.