Perry will host Raccoon River Conference rival Ballard for a girls/boys set Friday, with special events entwined throughout the occasion.
Friday will also serve as Alzheimer’s Awareness Night as well as providing the opportunity for a reunion of the 1988 boys State Championship team.
Late head coach Tom Schleicher suffered from Alzheimer’s before passing away April 23, 2016. In honor of Schleicher and to increase awareness of the disease, all fans are asked to wear purple and to contribute to the fight against Alzheimer’s.
An information booth will be provided and wrist bands sold, as well as placards for a Remembrance Wall. PHS staff will raise funds by holding a Jeans Day Jan. 4.
A special speaker will address the crowd between games, and a 66-second fundraiser will be held, in recognition that someone in the United States will develop the disease every 66 seconds.
Between games the Class 2A 1988 State Champion Bluejays, coached by Schleicher, will be introduced.
Perry had appeared in the 1987 tournament, opening with a 70-63 win over Maquoketa. A 72-67 loss in to Cedar Rapids Regis in the semifinals dropped Perry to the consolation finals, where the Jays placed fourth after a 70-49 setback to Audubon.
The Bluejays played their way back to the state tourney the following season, topping Western Christian (Hull), 85-79, and Washington, 68-63, to reach the finals. Perry claimed the top prize by easily dismissing Council Bluffs St. Albert, 76-60. The Falcons had reached the title game with a 56-53 win over Cedar Rapids LaSalle, which, a few years later, would merge with Regis to create CR Xavier.
St. Albert returned to Des Moines for the 1989 tourney, defeating Pella, 65-59, to win the crown denied then by Schleicher’s crew.
Shooting fundraisers will be held at halftime of each game. For $1 per shot, fans can attempt a 3-pointer at halftime of the girls game, with the first 20 to sink one from beyond the arc winning a six-inch sub sandwich from Subway. A Party Platter will be given by Subway to the first person making a half-court shot (also $1 per attempt) during intermission of the boys contest.
The girls game will begin at 6 p.m. with the boys contest to follow.
