Jimmy Sheldrup| Last Sunday I made my debut at the Cross Campus Throwdown. For the first time, I stepped onto the floor at the prestigious Chiles Center for some organized, competitive basketball. I was expecting very low-key, easygoing basketball games.
Was I wrong.
“Kids get really competitive, so it’s fun. We can actually go out there and compete,” Seth Roessman, the 3-point shooting champion from Shipstad Hall said. “I did it last year, and it was a lot more competitive than I thought it would be... I think that it was a lot more competitive this year than last year.”
The Cross Campus Throwdown is an annual event held by senior Connor Snashall and junior Taylor Spooner. Each year, all of UP’s best amateur basketball players come together and play for bragging rights and dorm pride.
Needless to say, testosterone could be smelt in the air. This was the perfect opportunity to bring together basketball players from all backgrounds for a good cause.
While there is an obvious undertone of intensity and competition, the Throwdown, at its core, is a charity event. Money is raised for Special Olympics of Oregon, with buy-ins of $5 for a spot on a team, and $3 for an opportunity to play in the 3-point shooting competition.
The Throwdown began when Snashall went to San Diego for a social entrepreneurship conference his sophomore year. While there, he was inspired to start a competition that he hoped would raise money and awareness for a good cause.
"I picked out Special Olympics, it was the cause I wanted to support,” Snashall said. “This is my third one, we have been raising money for the Special Olympics every year."
This years competition raised over $400, all of which has been sent to Special Olympics of Oregon.
While the Throwdown has its roots in philanthropy, it is still a competitive event. Dorms show up looking to establish themselves as the best. From Haggerty Hall to Christie Hall, all of the best players come to play. Additionally, two off-campus teams participated.
All of the teams were put into one of two groups, where they played a minimum of three games. From there, the two best teams from each group played in the semi-finals. The winners moved to the championship and the losers moved to the third-place game.
The two off-campus teams, known simply as Stuart’s team and Kelly’s team eventually played for the title of best team. Stuart’s team eventually pulled out the win, and earning themselves the title of best team on campus.
Cameron Trostle, a member of the championship winning “Stuart’s team”, said it felt good to finally win the championship, citing prior defeats as a motivation to win.
Trostle, like many of the other players, loves to play against higher competition. In the championship, he had the opportunity to play against an ex-Division 1 player.
Everyone was kind of afraid to play against Kelly’s team - they are taller than everybody, and they had Korey, who was a D1 player,” Cameron said. “It’s fun to play against good people too.”
At the end of the day, the event was about the charity that we were supporting. Snashall and Spooner did a tremendous job to create a unique, fun event to help raise awareness and money for a great cause.
Playing basketball is great, but being able to help others in the process makes it all the better.
Jimmy Sheldrup is a sports writer for The Beacon. He can be reached at sheldrup18@up.edu or on Twitter @CJSheldrup.
