February 19, 2020

The Galloping Ghosts of Marie Philip School at The Learning Center for the Deaf participated in Eastern Schools for the Deaf Athletic Association (ESDAA) 88th Boys Basketball tournament at Pennsylvania School for the Deaf in Philadelphia. Seven other teams hailing from other states such as Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, Ohio and Pennsylvania, participated in the tournament.

First round – Galloping Ghosts played against Marie Katzenbach School for the Deaf (New Jersey) and won the game, 80-36. The win netted Coach John Monahan 300th career win!

Semi-Final of ESDAA – Galloping Ghosts played against New York School for the Deaf-Fanwood (NYSD). NYSD led at halftime by 1 point, frustrating our defense with their three point shots. However, we re-grouped and made strong runs in the 2nd half to win the game, 75-61, thus earning our 5th trip to championship match in 12 years.

ESDAA Championship – Galloping Ghosts played in the championship game against defending ESDAA champion, Lexington School for the Deaf (Jackson Height, NY). We got off to a good start in the first quarter however Lexington came back in early third quarter to lead by 2 points. Our team re-grouped, regained the lead and never looked back. We won the first ESDAA Division 1 championship and have become the first school in history to win ESDAA Division 3, Division 2 and Division 1 Championship! Kyle Florio (sophomore), Slavik Sukhovtsev (sophomore) and Luke McBrine (junior) were selected to All Tournament team while Amogne Konkel-Harmon (sophomore) was named Most Valuable Player for Championship Game.

It was a wonderful tournament where we got to witness our coach earning 300th career wins and our team winning the championship game!