Several CBC Sports Radio staffers recently sat down for a few good games of basketball, taking part in the 6th Annual Bridge II Sports’ August Madness Wheelchair Basketball Tournament Fundraiser. The tournament took place on Monday, August 7, 2017, at the PNC Arena in Raleigh.
99.9 The Fan Producer Alec Campbell took part for the second time this year along with Reese & KMac from “the Sports Shop on Buzz Sports Radio and Bill Zeoli, Dennis Cox and Michael Shelton who work with The Fan, Buzz Sports Radio and High School OT.
“Bridge II Sports has a mission to bring athletics to people with disabilities, so we get to form a team and Bridge II Sports provides us with an All-Star to play with,” explained Campbell. “This was my second year participating in the event with my friends and colleagues. We were also pleased to welcome former UNC great and long time NBA player, Sam Perkins, as our celebrity teammate.”
Even though he had tried his hand at wheelchair basketball once before, Campbell said it’s no easy task.
“It took us a game to get comfortable as it is much more difficult than it appears,” he said. “It took us a game to get comfortable as it is much more difficult than it appears. So, we lost the first game, won the second game and lost our third game. It was a blast as always and a great way to get active and give back as a station and company.”
Zeoli participated for the first time this year.
“It was actually my first time every playing wheelchair basketball and I had a blast!” he said. “I give a lot of ‘props’ to the awesome people who are actually disabled who make it look so easy because it is definitely not easy! My arms are pretty sore this morning.”
Cox also was a first-timer.
“It was an amazingly fun experience!” he said. “It was well run, very organized and everyone there was pleasant to each other and supportive of one another.”
Zeoli agreed.
“The people from Bridge II Sports and all of the volunteers were outstanding and the event itself was run really great. It was organized, everyone had fun. There was just so much positivity, it was really great to see. Bridge II Sports is a great organization who make sure the people with the biggest hearts can still play sports.”
Even though the day was all about fun, the players took the tournament seriously.
“Personally, for me, I was amazed to see how competitive everyone was, especially those, unfortunately, are bound to a wheelchair or live with a prosthetic limb,” said Cox. “They competed as hard as anyone that I’ve been against in any sort of athletic contest, even when I was in college playing lacrosse. It showed me that no matter your circumstance that the drive to compete and be the best you can be comes from within.”
Overall the CBC Sports Radio team came away with a positive experience.
“Even though we only 1 out of our 3 games and were eliminated, It was awesome to see so much positivity and everyone just having a great time supporting this great event,” said Zeoli, “and it is definitely something I would love to participate in again in the future.”
Thanks to CBC Sports Radio for these capcom photos.