SISTERS – For basketball players, it’s only natural to want to avoid traveling – which is why the annual Sisters Shootout Tournaments always get a warm welcome from Central Oregon recreational youth teams when the season starts back up.

The games are also good news for businesses in Sisters, and even in Bend and Redmond, whose economies get a boost from tournament traffic throughout the winter.

This season’s round of tournaments kicked off this past weekend with the Black Butte Ranch Classic, at Sisters High School and Sisters Middle School, hosted by the Sisters Organization for Activities and Recreation (SOAR). Grades 5 and 6 open-level as well as grades 7 and 8 A- and B-level girls waged battle on the courts from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. for the Classic title, as well as for some hard-earned respect for their team.

The games were fast-paced and aggressive despite the size of some of the players.

”It’s neat. The kids from Sisters don’t have to travel to play other local teams, and Central Oregon teams don’t have to travel to play ‘away’ teams,” noted Matt Macauley, tournament director for SOAR. ”(The tournaments) also boost the economy for all of Central Oregon. Around tournament time, the streets (of Sisters) are crowded with visiting teams and their parents. A lot of visitors even stay in Bend and Redmond because there’s a shortage of lodging in Sisters.”

Two weekends ago, Macauley expected teams from as far away as Woodburn, Tualatin and Burns, but the season’s first tournament was canceled due to snowy weather.

Macauley reports that last year the tournaments pumped roughly $1.8 million into the Central Oregon economy by the end of the season, according to a estimate calculated by Tom Coffield, former director of SOAR. Lori Ketchum, bookkeeper and administrative assistant for Best Western Ponderosa Lodge in Sisters, recalls that for years, all the lodge’s vacancies have been nearly filled on tournament weekends.

According to George VanRy, longtime employee of the Subway sandwich shop in Sisters, Subway also sees a noticeable surge in business during tournament days.

”I can’t give an accurate assessment of exactly how much more business we get,” said VanRy, ”but at least one team per tournament calls in a big order, so we stay busy.”

On Saturday, 22 teams and their supporters, with athletes from between 15 and 20 schools around the state, joined the tournament. Recreational teams came from as far as Burns and John Day to play a total of three games.

According to Denice Lovell, coach of the John Day Lady Stangs – made up of girls in grades 7 and 8 – Saturday marked the team’s first-ever basketball tournament.

”Making the three-hour drive to these tournaments is our only option,” said Lovell, a first-year coach and longtime basketball player herself. ”We don’t have much back east, but maybe to play Baker City or Burns.”

John Day played the undefeated Crook County Spurs, made up of all eighth-grade girls, in one of the last games of the day. According to Sari Verity, the wife of the Spurs’ coach and a basketball coach of eight years herself, the Spurs have been practicing three times per week since the beginning of November.

Their commitment paid off; the Spurs dominated tournament play on Saturday, with grade 6, 7 and 8 teams all coming out on top.

For the Veritys, basketball is a family affair. Their twin daughters, Sammi and Josi, play on the team, and their baby son Bodi already has his own Spurs uniform. Sari Verity reported that Bodi likes being at the gym more than he likes being at home.

”We love Matt’s (SOAR tournament director) tournaments and we love basketball,” said Sari Verity. ”I’ve played ever since I could walk. Every skill I’ve used in life I learned (on the court): work ethic, sportsmanship, being a team player.”

Macauley, who also coaches Sisters Middle School football and junior varsity softball at Sisters High School, noted that the tournament is a lot of work, but feels his efforts are well worth it.

”It’s good to see teams from all over match up,” explained Macauley. ”It’s also nice to meet other coaches from other teams. They’re such positive role models for the players.”

The next Sisters Shootout tournament, the Gallery Restaurant Classic, is slated for this weekend and will host both boys and girls in grades 5 through 8, with a four-game guarantee per team.

Abbie Beane can be reached at 541-383-0393 or at abeane@bendbulletin.com.