CONVAL HOOP HERITAGE

W hat’s this photo doing here? We think some sort of Conval history has been made as eight members of our D2 final four soccer team are dominating this year’s boys’ basketball team roster— Jake Daniels and Max Cail (pictured during a game this fall with Pelham), plus Joe Gutwein, Ryan Close, Austin Klonel, Wyatt Beaulieu, Ethan Kinney and Bryson Boice . More than just perhaps historic trivia, there is significance not to be ignored: these soccer brothers bring to the bball team proven teamwork, communication, camaraderie, the importance of skill building when no one is around, the value of a strong defense that leads to a good offense, non-stop hustle, and a winning culture.  And not only that, they can use their hands, too. #twobeautifulgames #coolhistorymaybe #rollcougs

Al Johnson ('87) had a jaw-dropping 30 seconds in the 1986 state semi-finals vs. Berlin . I n the 1986 state tournament semi-finals against Berlin, Conval junior Al Johnson qualified for the Guinness Book of World Records and reportedly a mention in USA Today by scoring nine points in the game’s last 30 seconds! After the Cougars fell behind 32-30 with 34 seconds to play, Al converted a three-point play with 13 seconds to go, and scored six more points in the remaining seconds—two on technical free throws and four on layups. Holy cow! Conval, the fifth seed in the Class I (D2) tournament, won the game 39-32 and went on to upset highly ranked Fall Mountain in the finals, 52-48, for the school’s first-ever boys’ basketball state championship. #historymaker #nevergiveup #rollcougs

The 1982-'83 Cougars of Coach Art Giovannangeli . T he 1982-83 Cougars began what was to be a highly successful year by defeating Goffstown in the season opener. Coach Arthur “Mr. Gio” Giovannangeli’s squad, led by the sharp shooting of Jack Ellerkamp and the inside strength of Todd Burgess , soon became one of the elite teams in Class I (now D2). Late in the season, Conval momentarily moved into first place with a heart-stopping win over Pembroke that saw home fans storming the court in joy. After finishing the year 15-3, the boys earned a first-round bye in the state tournament, but saw their season abruptly end in the quarter-finals against Monadnock, 84-78. Monadnock, with a considerable height advantage that got the Cougars in foul trouble, was one of the three teams to defeat Conval during the regular season. Nevertheless, that ‘82-‘83 team was part of a decade of excellence for Conval that included a state championship in 1986 and a runner-up in 1989. Pictured from left are...

O nce upon a time, long before the first shovel broke ground for Conval High School in the late 1960s at what was once part of the Vose dairy farm in North Peterborough, there was just a name. As nine area towns considered coming together to form one school district, the first question was, “What should we call ourselves?” And so in April of 1966 began a public opinion contest of sorts to decide upon a name. The leading choice seemed to be Contoocook Valley Regional School District, since the river flowed from Peterborough north (yes, north) to Antrim. But we forget that we could have been something else. Other names being considered by voters were: Highland, Tri-Mountain, Wapack, MacDowell, Granite Hills and Yankee regional school district. As it turned out, none of those came close  to Contoocook Valley in the eyes of the public. We had a winner! (And we still do.) But then the first problems: “Who can spell it right?” and  “Who can even pronounce it correctly?” “And not o...

The 1949-50 PHS girls' team practicing. I n the early days of New Hampshire high school basketball, girls competed interscholastically before the boys. Eligibility was vague at first, with reports around the state of alumni or even a coach playing with the team away from home. Both boys and girls games, along with town league games, were consistently front page news in the Peterborough Transcript . The local paper often referred to the girls team as “lassies” (this was before days of mascots) and players were at one time identified as “Miss Jones led the scoring.” Pictured are members of the Peterborough High 1949-50 team, under the stern eye of Coach Alice Bubriski . Next to her is manager Paula Durkee . Four of the starters (from left) are Mary Myhaver, Eleanor Johnson, Jane Emerson, and Barbara Hannon . That season, the girls often played before the boys’ game in the Town House. #justwow #historymatter

Kevin Pettee (CV '73 ) T he very first points ever scored by a Conval High boys’ basketball team were from the hands of an unlikely source. In the Cougars’ first-ever game in December 1970 at Bishop Brady High School in Concord, Kevin Pettee (‘73), pictured during his sophomore year, brought his JV bench and the varsity team in the stands to their feet after scoring the school’s first-ever hoop. “I remember Coach Ray Brown looked amazed because I wasn’t ever anything like a good player,” Kevin recalls. He said the shot was “actually an error because when the loose ball flew by over my head in the three-second area, what I tried to do was to tip it over in the direction of a teammate. But instead, the ball bounced up off my palm and landed in the hoop. I doubt I ever scored another point.” #alwaysbeready #anythingcanhappen #historymatters #rollcougs

  H ere are the schedules for this year's Conval High boys' and girls' teams. Unified team schedule to be announced... #theheritagecontinues #rollcougs ...