Youth couldn't beat out experience on Friday night as the Rochester Memorial School teachers defeated the sixth grade class 83-72 in the annual student versus staff basketball game.

The teachers' 15 year winning streak has been hard fought, and they take it seriously.

"You don't throw the game," said teacher Danni Kleiman.

Sixth grade teacher Tracey Foras cheered on students and staff from the sidelines when she wasn't on the court herself. She said the game originally started as a way for the teachers to gain a victory after their annual relay race defeat.

"For years we did the relay race, and we could never beat them and man we tried," she said.

The relay race is gone, but the basketball games have stayed. Each year they are played to raise funds for the Nurse Thayer Scholarship Fund, in honor of a former school nurse. Rochester high school seniors who are going into any area of the medical field can apply for the scholarship, said Kleiman.

Although the teachers always win, they do it "huffin' and puffin'" said physical education teacher Kevin Woodward.

"Every year it's close."

Woodward recently began a basketball unit in gym class, so all of the students have had at least some experience, though he doesn't let them get too competitive.

"This is a treat for them," he said of Friday night's game.

While they didn't come away victorious, sixth grader Jake Feen was in awe of the game.

"It was just amazing," he said. "I was thinking that we were going to get crushed going into it, but we did really well."

Assistant Principal Charlie West said many students played this year, which is always encouraging.

Mini teams of students took the court in four-minute intervals throughout the game, and the staff swapped in and out as well.

At the end of the game, the victors were, of course, gracious winners.

"Every year it's awesome," said Principal Derek Medeiros. "The kids are tough. They're energetic. They're fast."