Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, May 26, 1994 TAG: 9405260150
SECTION: NEIGHBORS PAGE: S-6 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By JOHN A. MONTGOMERY SPECIAL TO THE ROANOKE TIMES & WORLD-NEWS
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
When you've got more than 150 teams descending upon the Roanoke Valley, and you need to determine champions in nearly 20 divisions within a 36-hour period, the agenda becomes pretty complex.
Throw in the variables of several sites and many, many fields, and . . . well, it's a good thing that technology has brought to us computers and high-speed copiers.
Fortunately for the Roanoke Star, Executive Director Danny Beamer is an old hand at making out bracket sheets. Although Beamer is just 31, he's completing his eighth year in his current position.
This is also the eighth year of the Crestar tournament, and other tourneys in the fall and spring have become annual events as well.
The Crestar tournament has grown from 41 teams to as many as 188 teams in 1991 and 1992. The number of teams in a division can range from four to 12.
"Eight is the ideal number," Beamer said, explaining a myriad of round-robin options that he must consider when making the pairings.
Beamer never knows how many teams are entering, of course, until the application deadline. Even then, he sometimes doesn't know. Little mistakes can create big problems.
Beamer once inadvertently left a team out, only to discover his error at the last minute. This meant putting together a new schedule, notifying all the teams, officials, volunteers, and media.
And this year, one out-of-state coach checked the wrong box regarding the gender of his team. "That was a real mess," Beamer said, adding that implementing a new schedule is always preferable to leaving a team out.
Beamer has learned. And, he always footnotes his schedules with a strong warning:
"Subject to change."
by CNB