Teachers Top Students in Benefit Basketball Game for Chardon

raised $800 for the Chardon High School fund with a basketball game pitting teachers against students.

"We wanted to come together and see what we could do as a faculty," said math teacher Matt Duraj. "We chose a basketball game because most felt they could at least participate."

They not only took part, they defeated the students 56-54 in a thrilling overtime contest. The game started out with seventh-grade boys, followed by seventh-grade girls, eighth-grade girls and finally the eighth-grade boys, with girls playing against women teachers and boys against the men.

The seventh-grade girls threatened to end it in the third quarter, amassing a 14-point lead before teachers rallied to end the quarter at a 48-38 deficit. School resource officer Alvin Schmitt thought about running out to the court to call a technical foul if the teachers fell too far behind, but held back.

"I had faith in the teachers," he said.

It was all in good fun, said Principal Paul Destino, who hit a key three-pointer late in the contest to make the score 56-51.

"It's fun for the students," Destino said. "We're also going to have a pasta dinner (for Chardon). We have connections with them. We have a lot of people who were affected by what happened."

Chardon High School's principal is a close friend of Destino's and one of the shooting victims is a nephew of a staff member. There also are students whose cousin was killed.