The Seniors vs. Staff Kickball game is a big event for the Point Boro Community. The Class of 2024 gets to play against the talented Point Pleasant Boro High School Staff. This is going to be the fifth annual game, but this year with a special twist. For the first time ever, there will be a double header!
The first game will start at 5:45 PM and will be Brick United vs. Point Boro Special Olympians. Then the second game will be the Seniors Vs Staff at 7:00 PM. Both games will be located at Al Saner Field at Pine Belt Stadium on the Campus of Point Pleasant Boro High School.
The 2023-2024 Sports Management class is planning this event. Mr. Johnson is the teacher of this class and has done a great job organizing it in the past. When asked about the game he described, “it’s not just about the actual kickball game itself but it’s about the process such as making sales pitches and planning the actual kickball game to be entertaining for the spectators.”
The money raised from these games will go to Project Graduation, “Un-Blue the school”, and the self-sustaining Sports Management classes.
Meet some of the players on the Class of 2024 Team!
To start, Kyleigh Cilento will look to be a big contributor to the senior squad. Her nickname is KC, she will be playing in the outfield, and wearing jersey #10. Kyleigh has decided to enroll at Florida Southern College to play soccer and pursue a degree in nursing. Her favorite memories from Point Boro are going to football games and the soccer seasons.
Next up, we have Jayson Bennett aka Bing. He will also be playing in the outfield and wearing jersey #24. His advice to incoming freshmen is “if you’re not first your last.”
Lastly, we have Juliette Ryan or Juju. She will be wearing jersey #3 for the seniors. She will be attending James Madison University but will miss GSOC, football games, and setting new school records at track.
So how did all this happen?
Students in Mr. Johnson’s sports management class were assigned a company to go and present to our class and ask for sponsorship. There were multiple different options that the companies could pick from. The Champion Sponsor which goes for $2,500 includes the sponsor’s name in all the announcements, event signage, multi-week social media, campaign, press release, and the company name on the game shirts and “panther pit” shirts. We also have sponsor opportunities for companies that still want to help out the community. There is a Black & Gold sponsor that goes for $1,000, a Panther Pit sponsor that goes for $500, and a Premium Seat Sponsor for $250. The top sponsors of this event are Pine Belt Cars, OceanFirst Bank, Vericon Construction, Blended Fresh Food and ShoreHouse, Rider University, and the PBA. All these companies picked the Champion Sponsor and will be the main Sponsors of the night
When a group of students were assigned to get a Champion Sponsorship from Pine Belt Cars, they proposed an idea to the owner, Robert Sickel. They asked Sickel if he would sponsor a field goal kick to potentially win a new car. Basically, that means anyone can enter a drawing to be picked to kick a field and if they make it they could “win a new car”. Rob enjoyed this idea. He got back to the students a day later and said that he would be willing to give $30,000 towards a new car to the person who kicks if they made it on one condition, Mr. Johnson has to go in a dunk tank. The dunk tank will be there all game so many teachers will have the opportunity to be dunked. Mr. Johnson was very impressed by the ladies who proposed the idea and he explained, “the dunk tank and the field goal kick will help make the game more of an experience for the fans”.
This kickball game is more than just a game for the seniors and staff. It is an opportunity to include the Special Olympians and a time for the whole community to come together to watch the game and experience all the activities. We hope to see you there at Al Saner on May 21st!
