It's a battle of the police officers versus the fire department on the hardwood.

Sponsored by the Lehighton 150 Celebration Committee, the second annual Battle of the Badges Basketball Game will be held Sunday in the Lehighton High School gymnasium, 1 Indian Lane.It will begin at 6:30 p.m. with doors opening at 5:30 p.m. Tickets are available at the Lehighton Borough Municipal Building, or by calling 610-377-4002, ext. 211. Tickets are being sold in advance for $5, and will be available for $7 at the door. Children under the age of 6 will be admitted for free.Members of the committee, along with Lehighton Police officer Matt Arner, gathered in front of the borough and police stations Friday to announce the event.The game will pit the Lehighton Fire Department against the Lehighton Area Police departments, which includes Lehighton, Franklin Township and Mahoning Township.Autumn Abelovsky, secretary of the committee, said the event will be a fun, friendly basketball game."The Lehighton 150 Celebration Committee is actively planning several fundraising events leading up to the Sesquicentennial, all of which are aimed at bringing our community closer with positive, fun and interesting activities," Abelovsky said. "All proceeds from the event will go directly to planning the summer 2016 celebration."Last year's event was won by the police officers by a score of 46-33, which left them with the "Mayor's Cup" trophy.However, that score may have been a bit tainted, said Abelovsky, who added that doughnuts caused some attention problems for the police officers, while toy firetrucks distracted the firefighters, she said.This year's event will also include a half-time Tug-of-War competition that will feature several local organizations and businesses.As an added bonus, Tux, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguin, will return to entertain the spectators and pose for photos.Also, emergency vehicles from both the police departments and fire department will be on hand for photo opportunities.In addition to the game, the committee will also have a 50/50 raffle, a concession stand and T-shirt sales for the event.Arner said he's amped up for the contest."It's an event where the fire department and police department can get together, have fun, enjoy a little competition and do something good for the community," Arner said. "(Last year) Tux was instrumental in building energy from the crowd, players and made the game very interesting."Patrons are asked to consider supporting the local police officers by buying the blue and gold shirts, and the fire department with the black and red shirts. A new shirt logo is available this year.For more information or to join, email

celebration@lehightonborough.com or call the borough secretary at 610-377-4002, ext. 211.The committee can also be found on Facebook at

www.facebook.com/groups/Lehighton150.