Chi Omega sisters and basketball enthusiasts came together on Saturday in Gantcher Center to participate in the annual Swishes for Wishes basketball tournament. The tournament, which benefits the Make-A-Wish foundation, is one of Chi Omega's biggest fundraisers.
The sorority raised close to $800 for the charity, according to Chi Omega President Alisa Brennan, a junior.
"It went really well, and we raised a lot of money," Brennan said.
Chi Omega's national branch announced an alliance with the Make-A-Wish foundation in 2002. Tufts' chapter has continued to raise money for the foundation through its annual basketball tournament.
Each member of the basketball teams paid a $5 fee to enter into the tournament.
Since Swishes for Wishes is not a new event, planning was fairly straightforward. Chi Omega sisters tabled at Carmichael and Dewick-MacPhie dining halls and created a Facebook.com group to popularize the event.
Saturday afternoon's competition featured a five-on-five pickup tournament which involved twenty-one teams. Teams opted to play either competitively or non-competitively. The team Big Cats was the winner of the competitive league and played against the Sigma Nu Fraternity team to claim the championship.
While most of the participants were male, there was an all-female Chi Omega team.
Senior David Mok, a member of the Big Cats, enjoyed the general atmosphere of the tournament.
"I thought it was really well organized, and I thought it was great having all the Chi Omega sorority girls out there cheering us on. It was great," Mok said.
The Big Cats played a total of six games and won the final game in overtime by three points to take the championship, Mok said.
Chi Omega also held a raffle during the tournament, with prizes including gift certificates to local restaurants. Proceeds also went to Make-A-Wish.
