HAGERSTOWN – The World Famous Harlem Wizards will return to Washington County this spring for a community basketball event that doubles as a fundraiser for South Hagerstown High School and a long list of local schools. The show-style game is set for Monday, March 23, at the ARCC at Hagerstown Community College, with doors opening at 5:30 p.m. and tip-off at 6:30 p.m.
Hosted by the South Hagerstown High School Athletic Booster Club, the evening is designed to benefit multiple Washington County Public Schools through an online ticket revenue share. When purchasing tickets, fans can select their school at checkout to direct a portion of the sale to that campus.
Participating schools include Bester, Eastern, Emma K. Doub, Fountaindale, Jonathan Hager, Lincolnshire, Maugansville, Pangborn, Paramount, Potomac Heights, Rockland Woods, Ruth Ann Monroe Primary, Salem Avenue, Marshall Street School/Job Development Program, E. Russell Hicks, Springfield and Western Heights.
In the hours leading up to the game, the Wizards will bring their brand of interactive entertainment directly to students with assemblies at Maugansville Elementary, Bester Elementary, Ruth Ann Monroe Primary and Fountaindale Elementary. During those visits, students will see ballhandling tricks up close, join in dancing and laughter, and have the chance to purchase Wizards gear or tickets to the evening event.
“This is a fun event for the entire Washington County community, not just one group,” South Hagerstown Athletic Booster Club president J.C. Rivera said. “We are thrilled to have so many schools as part of the ticket revenue share this year. We want this event to be something the entire community can enjoy and benefit from.”
The ARCC crowd can expect extra local flair this year. Stryker, the mascot of the Hagerstown Flying Boxcars, is scheduled to make a special appearance. Any child wearing a Wizards jersey will be invited onto the court for pregame warmups with the players, and the team promises to stay after the final buzzer to sign autographs “until every kid/teen has the autograph(s) they desire, or until the lights shut off.”
The Wizards will face the Backboard Bandits, a roster packed with area educators, coaches and community figures. Scheduled to suit up are Tom Burtman (aka Johnny Castle), director of promotions for the Hagerstown Flying Boxcars; 2025 Miss Hagerstown Sara Farmer; Emma K. Doub Elementary teacher Christopher Omps; Maugansville Elementary physical education teacher Matt Ridenhour; Salem Avenue Elementary lead teacher Andrew Dinterman; Bester Elementary principal Scott Wildesen; Ruth Ann Monroe Primary physical education teacher John Hampton; EB Williams, owner of EB Williams Basketball Player Development; Fountaindale Elementary counselor Regan Hott; South Hagerstown High health and physical education teacher and girls basketball assistant coach Micah Meredith; E. Russell Hicks Middle physical education teacher Amanda Fleming; Western Heights Middle physical education teacher and South Hagerstown High head boys basketball coach Shane Santell; Western Heights Middle student intervention specialist and South Hagerstown High assistant football coach Andrew Wells; and Lincolnshire Elementary physical education teacher and Hagerstown Community College Hall of Fame volleyball coach Beth Domenico.
Two Washington County basketball greats will guide the Bandits from the bench. Cathy Parson, a three-time Washington County player of the year and two-time high school All-American at North Hagerstown, was the first female athlete to earn an athletic scholarship at West Virginia University, have her jersey retired there and be inducted into the WVU Athletic Hall of Fame. She went 183-83 in a decade as head coach at Christopher Newport University, served as interim head coach for the WNBA’s Washington Mystics and held coaching posts at Howard University, Frostburg State, Stratford University and Central State; she now works as director of sports and wellness at the Hagerstown YMCA.
Her fellow coach, Helen Mency, was co-Washington County Player of the Year in 1986 at North Hagerstown and an honorable mention pick for USA TODAY’s All-High School Girls Basketball team. Mency was also a four-time all-county track and field standout before playing on a full basketball scholarship at Providence University, where she scored 1,224 career points and held the program’s single-game steals record for 24 years. After three All-Big East tournament honors and a stint on the Providence coaching staff, she returned home to coach at Smithsburg, North Hagerstown and South Hagerstown; she was inducted into the Washington County Sports Hall of Fame in 2018 and now serves as a case management specialist for the Maryland Department of Juvenile Services.
Fans will have several ticket options through the Wizards’ online box office. Student tickets are $15 and adult general admission is $20. Reserved seating is $30 and includes a team poster for kids to collect autographs and a $5 souvenir gift certificate to a local sponsoring business. Courtside Plus tickets cost $50 and come with courtside reserved seating, a pregame meet-and-greet with players, a souvenir lanyard, a team photo for kids, a $10 gift certificate to a local sponsoring business and a $10 discount on a Wizards replica jersey.
The online box office will remain open until 3:30 p.m. on the day of the event, unless tickets sell out earlier. Digital tickets will be delivered to the email address provided at checkout, and can be purchased at harlemwizards.com under the “get tickets” tab or directly through the event’s pretix link. Wizards merchandise, including replica jerseys, will be available on site and through the team’s online shop, with online orders available for pickup at the game.
The South Hagerstown Athletic Booster Club continues to seek local business sponsors to help support the event and its beneficiaries. Businesses interested in sponsorship opportunities can email booster club president JC Rivera at [email protected].
