The Hooplandia team attended Eastern States Exposition (ESE) Night at the Springfield Thunderbirds game on Saturday, March 29. They brought the best of the Northeast’s Ultimate 3x3 Basketball Tourney + Festival to the MassMutual Center by inviting some of Hooplandia’s 2024 champions to accompany them on the ice for the evening’s puck drop.
Following the national anthem and a presentation of the evening’s sponsors, Coach Steve Pratte, of East Longmeadow, Mass., introduced his Hooplandia champions, The 3 Bucketeers. Team members include Mia Pendergast, Alexa Wiedersheim and Aubrey Pratte, Steve’s daughter. In 2024, these young ladies won the 11U Girls Division at Hooplandia, which is why their team’s name is featured on the newly installed Hooplandia exhibit in the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.
For more than three years, Coach Pratte has been coaching the girls’ suburban basketball league. Prior to this role, he coached his son’s team for four years. When asked about his experience at the Northeast’s Ultimate 3x3 Tourney + Festival, Pratte said, “Hooplandia is a great experience! It’s a full weekend of competitive basketball, and the chance to pull up in front of family and friends at the Basketball Hall of Fame and win the championship game was unforgettable for the girls and me!
“ESE Night [at the Thunderbirds] was next level for the girls,” Pratte continued. “It was the cherry on top. To walk out in front of 7,000 people at a sold-out game was yet another unforgettable moment for them. We feel blessed.”
Throughout the evening, ESE’s Marketing department staffed a pop-up that provided attendees with a chance to ask all about the complex’s year-round calendar of events and spin-to-win stickers, scrunchies, koozies and other unique swag from Hooplandia and The Big E, North America’s fourth largest fair. Hooplandia’s next Thunderbirds pop-up will be on Monday, April 19, which is the American Hockey League (AHL) team’s Fan Appreciation Night.
Eager to get in on the action at Hooplandia this year? Advance discount team registration is open now at Hooplandia.com, as well as countless volunteer opportunities that offer a behind-the-scenes look at the tourney and loads of exclusive perks.