For the Altoona-Midway boys basketball team, this wasn’t just a monkey on their back.
It was more like a baboon. A 500-pound weight? More like a ton.
But the larger the obstacle, the greater the satisfaction after having overcome that barrier. No doubt there are still some gigantic smiles on the faces of Jets players, coaches and fans today.
For the first time in more than six years, the Altoona-Midway High School boys tasted victory in a varsity basketball game, defeating the Chetopa Hornets 37-31 Friday night. “To say the kids were pretty excited after the game tonight would be an understatement,” said an elated AMHS Head Coach Jeff Almond, who is in his first year at the helm of the program. “It was like the weight of the world was lifted off their shoulders. After not winning a varsity game in six years, it is quite a load off for the kids.”
Despite their absolute elation over finally snapping the long losing streak, the Altoona-Midway squad exhibited great class in victory, saving most of their jubilation for the locker room.
(Read more: The Chanute Tribune)