A healthy crowd lines the walls to watch Free State junior Jack Flynn, front, and FSHS freshman Alejandro Carballido-Flores battle it out during the Elite Eight round of a 64-player ping pong tournament on Tuesday, April 14, 2015 at the home of Logan Hawley.

Halfway through April, March Madness is still in full swing for Lawrence High School and Free State High School students watching and competing in a homegrown ping-pong tournament.

On any given night, you can find “about 60 or 70” local high school students congregating in the basement of Lawrence High School senior Logan Hawley’s house, he said, their heads turning left and right at the swing of a ping-pong paddle.

Free State senior Trevor Hughes created the “LK Ping Pong” tournament, designing it after the March Madness bracket system. He said he had the idea in homeroom one day in February, and after weeks of effort the tournament became a local high school phenomenon.

On March 1, 64 area high school students began battling it out in pool play for a spot in the 32-person first-round bracket. The competition is for more than just the glory of winning; to compete, players paid in $2 apiece, and the winner will take all.

Hawley met Hughes, of his rival high school, during pool play and the two became fast friends, he said. Hawley then offered to host the rest of the tournament at his house.

“The schools don’t really hate each other,” Hawley said. “That’s just during rivalry weeks.”

Hughes was eliminated in pool play — something he’s “still mad about” — but he continued organizing and promoting the tournament. He’d write live updates on social media, film game highlights and design posters. He’s now even selling T-shirts with his LK Ping Pong design and has about 15 orders, he said.

“Once I started posting pictures and videos, 60 people came over just to watch,” Hughes said.

When the players who would advance to the bracket were finalized, Hughes filmed himself in front of a green screen, hosting a graphically impressive “selection show.” He announced the “seeds” of each player, placing them by calculations based on their pool play wins.

LK Ping Pong only grew with each elimination. For the Sweet Sixteen last week, Hughes made a video for “one of the biggest matches of the whole tournament,” Hughes said, featuring Hawley and LHS junior Braxton Olson.

The video, uploaded to YouTube, is reminiscent of Kansas University pump-up videos shown before sporting events. Olson is seen approaching the ping-pong table with a stern face, and Hughes spins a paddle, ready to take Olson on.

The homemade video has had more than 3,000 views in just two weeks. Hawley said he’s even been recognized by strangers around town who know him as “that ping-pong guy.”

Olson ultimately won, but Hawley said he never wavered in whether to continue hosting the rowdy ping-pong face-offs at his home.

“I said immediately that I’d continue to host,” Hawley said. “I was already so deep into it and I felt like I was with Trevor in getting it hyped up — especially with trash talk.”

Hawley’s mother, Leslie Hawley, said she has enjoyed being able to provide a fun, safe environment for local teens at her home.

“It’s just good, clean fun,” Leslie Hawley said. “I like knowing where they are, that they’re safe.”

The Hawleys hosted the Elite Eight Tuesday night for another large crowd. Ultimately Olson and three Free State students — seniors Tripp Wright and Coleman Houk and freshman Alejandro Carballido — won. They will advance to the Final Four next week.

The tournament will end late in April or early May with the championship game, Hughes said, and Hawley and Hughes have high hopes for the final event. They plan to ask athletic directors if they can host the championship in a high school gym. Hughes said he dreams of running a scoreboard, playing pump-up videos and walk-in music prior to the game and having a concession stand.

Hughes said the idea that started in homeroom and grew to entertain so many has taught him and Hawley valuable lessons.

“We’ve learned how to organize events and promote them,” Hughes said. “It’s so hard getting everyone together, but so worth it.”

Hughes and Hawley said they both plan on studying marketing or sports promotions at KU in the fall, but not before they host another, “bigger” LK Ping Pong tournament this summer.

• For more on the tournament, follow LK Ping Pong on Twitter at @PongLk