North Kingstown Sports Camps: Basketball

Though March Madness and basketball season has passed, that doesn't stop the passion at this year's basketball sports camp at North Kingstown High School. From July 18 to 22, kids ranging from six to 16 years learned and practiced techniques at the camp.

"It builds character in the kids," said NKHS baseball coach Kevin Gormley, who runs the summer basketball sports camp. "I think sports goes hand in hand with good citizenship."

Though the age range may be wide, Gormley stresses the importance of getting kids involved with sports at a young age. "It helps them be social and make friends," he said. "It teaches them about adversity, life skills and about having to deal with losing."

The camp is broken down into three groups, kids aged six to nine , 10 to 13 and 14 to 16 years.

In order to keep it fun for the kids, there are many contests and games throughout the week. The kids have free throw contests, shot contests and scrimmages, to along with some drills. On Tuesday, they went through a defensive drill that taught them the proper positioning and body posture when playing defense.

There are team champions for the week, as you play with the same kids throughout the week. Each camp is split up into different teams and your team competes in games throughout the week. The team that finishes with the best record in each age bracket is crowned team champions for the week.

About the Coach

Gormley has been working the camp since 1999 and has been the main coordinator for the baseball and basketball summer camps for about seven to eight years. In 1998, he began coaching North Kingstown's baseball team and they have had great success. In June they finished as the runner-up, losing to Cranston West in the championship round.

He completed his Masters degree in education in 1999 at Johnson & Wales University and became a business teacher at South Kingstown High School in 2000. He taught there until 2003, and has taught at North Kingstown High since the fall of 2003.