Family, teammates and friends of Waylon Sauer gathered in the regional high school gym Sunday to remember the late teen and play the game he so loved: basketball.
Over a dozen teams took part in the third annual Waylon Sauer Basketball Tournament, an event that started after Waylon died in a car crash in 2023. The event drew standouts and amateurs, many who played with Waylon over the years and in high school.
“He loved basketball, he wasn’t the basketball star, he just had a huge heart for it and he loved some of these guys that he played with,” said Wenonah Madison, Waylon’s mom.
The event, founded by Waylon’s classmates Tayna Silva and Volkert Kleeman, has raised more than $100,000 for the Waylon Sauer memorial graduation fund, with money awarded to a graduating senior each year.
“Each [tournament] is so different,” said Ms. Madison. “The first one, it was so emotionally overwhelming. Last year we were able to enjoy it a little more and this year it’s really so much more fun.”
The event kicked off with a performance by the Black Brook Singers — a group made up of members of the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah). They performed a song in honor of Waylon, “the person he was, and the power of community,” said Ms. Madison.
There were plenty of returning players at this year’s fundraiser, including athletes from the basketball, baseball, soccer, hockey and swim teams, along with a group of first responders, among others.
Teams arrived in celebratory uniforms from matching pink shirts to puffy vests, and even kitchen aprons.
Many friends of Waylon’s returned to the Vineyard from college, and his cousins in middle school played as team “Vander Hoops.”
Waylon’s brother Amos played with members of the high school hockey team, eventually switching his team shirt to play in the final game with Team Over 30. The team, playing last year as Team Washed up, has added Amos to their lineup for the last few years’ finals.
“I’m dying laughing, because [Amos is] a hockey player, not a basketball player, it’s really cute,” said Ms. Madison.
Team Over 30 won Sunday’s tournament. Many of the team members had coached Waylon in high school, including JV boys basketball coach Kane Araujo.
“[This event is] really a community effort, and we’re so touched,” said Ms. Madison.
This article appears in April 3, 2026.