It's late Saturday night or early Sunday morning, depending on one's perspective. The gymnasium floor at Gill finally cleared about an hour ago and here in Corvallis, there are signs of elated Cheesemakers everywhere. 
   Out on hotel decks, painted-faced kids in the lobbies, or spilling out of pizza parlors, horns honking on the streets- It's been a great week. Next year, the boys and girls 3-A championships will still be here, but they'll begin on Thursday, instead of Tuesday, with 16 fewer teams. Put simply, it's an economic move to make the big barns, including Gill, more affordable for these tournaments. 

   Everyone still has the same chance to get to the big dance, but they'll be doing it elsewhere for the pre-quarterfinal rounds. Madras may sneak in to the tournament with a victory at Seaside that would have been played at Corvallis up to now, meaning Seaside never makes the trip or gets a second game in the consolation round.  One time at the tourney and you begin to appreciate the nuances that make an entire week such a special happening. First of all, 16 extra teams means a like number of small towns rolling into Corvallis and setting up their hopes and dreams.
   And early-round upsets happen. 
   All of the sudden, a LaSalle beats a top-ranked Marist, and the whole tourney is thrown into a different light. But mostly, its about the kids.

   Knowing that 160 fewer players are going to be able to experience the vast confines of Gill Coliseum, with the bright lights and the hardwood floors and the rims that are a little livelier, and the roar of crowds they've never played before in their respective small towns - it saddens those of us that appreciate tradition and make the effort to watch it all unfold. Three days is not enough. 
In the evenings, school buses line up outside as the well-lit shadows outside Gill Coliseum give glimpses of teenagers cherishing their weeknight away from home, gathering in groups and laughing and cheering loudly, excited to be 17 and with all these kids from other places. 
   Include bands, tumblers, dancers, players, rally squad members, families and townsfolk from all corners of the state in that equation.

   When you see a member of your own community, there's an odd recognition. Perhaps you've never engaged this person at home, but meeting up at a state tourney finds you earnestly and excitedly talking like lifelong friends. The old-timer in the wheelchair from Madras, a Native American who hasn't missed one of these in years, supporting his beloved White Buffalos. Will his team be one of the 16 missing next year? 
   A shortened tourney has little chance of providing the drama of five days of shifting expectations and upsets. People lured to the event by virtue of their town high school knocking someone off early and creating a wave of excitement back home.

   Tillamook's greatest fan, Velda Dahl, rest her soul, used to tell me about the plans made each year with her friends to take the week and travel to Eugene, at Mac Court, where the tourney was held before it moved to Corvallis. Velda could recite chapter and verse about the early-round upsets and schools that snuck into the tourney for the first time, and all the excitement around her own home team, the Cheesemakers, whenever they were able to grab a berth with a late-season rally. She wouldn't like this nonsense of a three-day tourney a bit.

   The story is, that the reason for the shift has more to do with the 4-A boys tourney being held at the ridiculously overpriced Coliseum in Portland than it has to do with what goes on with the small-town teams in Corvallis, or the 2-A event in Pendleton. The girls 4-A has been a success at Chiles Center for years. But the 4-A boys try to fill a 13,000 seat arena all week, and pay the mercenary Blazer-type prices, putting out the big bucks, draining the OSAA coffers in the process. Here's an idea: Move it to a smaller venue and fill it.

   So, it was extra special this year, having both Tillamook teams in the semifinal games and seeing the great migration southward, as the tourney developed in our favor. It was emotionally draining and everyone was tired at the end, but the ride was an E-ticket, resulting in a state championship for the boys and a trophy for the ladies. And anyone who was there will tell you Tillamook out-yelled the rest of the state by week's end.
   When the number-three team out of the Greater Oregon League reached the girls semifinal and the 16-9 Central Panthers reached the boys final, well, it made for an interesting week for their fans. Next year, 16 teams will be missed. That's a lot of excitement staying at home.

© 2003 Michael O'Brien