Playing guard on the BSM girls’ varsity basketball team, junior Olivia Antilla, who has been playing basketball since she was in second grade, recently joined the 1000 points club on Tuesday, January 4, 2011.
Starting on the varsity team in eighth grade gave Antilla the time she needed to make her mark in the history of BSM athletics. Her determination and athleticism help her achieve an average of 18 points per game.
During the game on January 4, Antilla knew it could be the night that she became recognized for scoring 1000 points. “I knew once I let go of the ball that it could be the shot that put me over 1000 points if I made it. When I saw that I had made the shot, it was a really good feeling––an exuberant feeling,” said Antilla.
Making her way to the 1000 points club was a goal, but it was a surprise that it approached so quickly. “I didn’t know what grade it would happen in, so it was a bonus that it happened during my junior year,” she said.
Antilla worked extremely hard both with her team and outside of practice to improve her game and earn her spot on the 1000 points club banner. “I practice with my team three times a week, by myself four times a week, and then I have a personal trainer, too,” said Antilla.
Antilla doesn’t plan on stopping at 1000 points, and she has a goal number of points that she wants to reach. “I don’t really want to set an exact number, but for a goal, I want to score 2000 points by the end of my senior year,” said Antilla.
There are two girls on Antilla’s team whom she thinks are almost ready to join her in the 1000 points club. “I think Khadijah [Shumpert] and Josie [Dillon] are really close,” said Antilla.
She is the only girl since 2007 to make it into the 1000 points club. There are only four other girls who have achieved 1000 points at BSM, and their names, along with the boys who have achieved the same honor, hang on a banner in the Haben Center. “Making your way into the 1000 points club is a really nice accomplishment for a high school basketball player,” said Mr. Jerry Pettinger.
