Finding a Way

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Pictured (from left) during a time out in a December 1972 game are Coach Ray Richard, John Cuddihee, Bruce Richardson and John Davies. 


A bit more about the team from 50 years ago…The 1972-’73 Cougars were a classic example of what perseverance can do over the long haul of a basketball season. It was said of this team, “they had more ups and downs than a yo-yo.” Conval struggled in losses in the first two games of the season but then turned on the defense to break through in the win column in late December against Merrimack (now a D1 school), 43-41. “I wish it was more convincing,” said Coach Ray Richard at the time, “but we’ll take it any way it comes.”


Throughout the season, the young Cougars never gave up and did whatever it took to find a winning combination, mixing and matching lineups between big on the boards and quick in transition. In a chaotic final week of the regular season, with four teams vying for the final tournament slot, Conval ran off three straight clutch victories—including two pulsating wins against rival Milford—to finish a surprising 11th.


As it turned out, the tournament game against sixth-ranked Berlin was a snapshot of that yo-yo season. The Cougars stunned the heavily-favored Mountaineers with an 11-point lead after three periods, but Berlin fought back and won it at the buzzer, 58-56. Hardly a failure season, it was an example to future generations of the importance of character-building, perseverance through the ups and downs of a season, and doing whatever it takes to get a W…


"...We’ll take it any way it comes.”

#lessonsinperseverance
#itsalongseason
#whateverittakes
#rollcougs

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