March Madness is what they call it but this 2020 basketball season can be summed up as March Sadness. In all my life of watching and playing basketball I have never seen the basketball season cancelled, an esp. right in the middle of games. Yes some have seen the season be locked out from the start, but this is different.

Not just the sport of basketball but schools, businesses, gyms, and markets all experience unprecedented times as the coronavirus takes center stage. 

As I am writing this story, we are being told no one is to be outside at night unless your essential worker. This a time where the term social distancing dominates everyday speech whilst the social media platform has now taken the form of our new town halls. Being a journalist and an essential worker now has shown that the virus is very media related as most people are just taking safety measures such as wearing mask in public and using hand sanitizer.

The athletes of the world are coping the best way they know possible as the quarantine seems to linger on till the upcoming summer months. Many of the NBA players have turned to the video game world in means of connecting with the fans and just feeling like the game of basketball is still in their lives.

But for the local people living inside the Merrimack valley finding an outlet can be exceedingly difficult and finding a person can be harder as most people are stuck in the house. But lo and behold I found someone who isn’t afraid of this pandemic and living life to the fullest.

Meet Christa Hayes a local photographer takin advantage of the situation and not letting the moment go to waste. Hayes is a photographer and college student for the Beverly Arts School at Monserrat. This virus is like nothing that no one has ever seen before, says Christa, “So I’m thinking why not cease the moment and capture this art in time. People and business alike are all effected, and pictures can help tell a story inspires others or warn others”.

As a freelancer worker Christa spends time going to different places taking shots of newsworthy or memorable moments and finding a way to make that a piece that then turns into art of some kind. When asking Christa what keeps her motivated during these times, she says that “the virus may be bad outside, but the weather and sunlight exposer of the spring is great for taking pictures. This is a moment in history and the ones who take advantage won’t be forgotten.”

Those words rang true for me as well, as I finish up my last semester of Community College this year. Going outside and taking walks in nature with my basketball seems to make me feel as normal as possible. The biggest question left on everyone’s mind is what is normal life going to be like after all this passes? 

The love of the game is something we hear a lot in the sports world, but only few can say they have seen others show this type of love on an everyday scale. Here at NECC we have some very dedicated staff members that work hard making sure think that NECC is a great place to grow and learn on and off the field.

One guy who is very known for his contributions across the Haverhill landscape and has a respected basketball rep is new men’s basketball coach Darren Stratton. Stratton will be taking over for Joe Tardif who took over for Stratton over the course of a few years and will inherit a team whose last year record was a blistering 5- 20.

Many people would probably look elsewhere for a coaching job, but Stratton sees the community college game as his niche in the market and plans on making an impact by focusing on all the little details from day one.

When asked about the long Hitaus from JUCO basketball, Stratton says “I came back because I missed the game and being able to help those guys in my community. Yes, I have been volunteering since my time off to help coaches but being able to give those community college guys a chance, some a second and third is something I truly miss.”

Now back in his first season in 6 years, the Knights have missed the playoffs the last 2 years and high player turnover rate has been an issue when coming into the second half of a season.

Juco players come and go, and this year will be no different with a total of 5 out of the 9 players leaving this year.

It all seems to be familiar to a vet like Stratton who says “I always have high expectations no matter what. Last year team lacked depth which helped lose some games on the defensive side of the ball, but that will change with more in-depth recruitment this summer. Also lack of shooting killed us down the stretch last year as teams went into zone defense early, but if I was to take something from the team this year it would be the attitude and the fight to get better every day despite the record.”

Coach Stratton plans on bringing his hard nose defense to NECC as well and this is his calling card throughout Region 21 play. “Yea some guys are offensive, but I’m a defensive guy.”, says Stratton.

“I plan on wearing teams down with my defensive schemes for a full 48 mins, but the challenge will be finding an offensive minded assistant coach that will help bring NECC to a new level.” Until all the coaching is figured out, Stratton has already had a few early commits and looks to use his local presence on the basketball scene to help attract some of the drifters.

It’s tough to say exactly what will happen with the Knights this upcoming basketball season because of the high player turnover rate and now factoring in the new corna virsus, but we do know that Coach Stratton will be there ready for war with his troops.

The love of anything can bring us through many ups and downs but in the end of the day, it’s what we love and makes us who we are. Coach Stratton, to say the least, loves the Merrimack Valley and many people love him back because of this and his dedication to hard work and fostering a winning culture where eve he goes.

From the deep basketball abyss to head honcho, the knight has been reborn and ready to lead NECC back to the top of region 21 basketball.