Harper Schreiner has gone down in school history and her coach wanted to be sure Friday night that everyone knew it.
As Schreiner stood at midcourt with teammates and fans cheering her on, head coach Brandon Parker celebrated her for reaching the “incredible milestone” as only the third women’s basketball player in Eudora history to reach 1,000 career points.
It’s a rare honor she now shares with her mother, Gretchen Freeland Schreiner, and Lauren Kracl Durkin.
Schreiner is also first in career 3-pointers, first in career steals, second in career assists, fourth in career blocks and will soon be in the top five all-time rebounding in Eudora, Parker said.
“Pretty impressive numbers for a point guard,” he said.
However, he said there was so much more to Schreiner than her stats.
“The greatest thing I can say about Harper is that from the first day she walked in here as a freshman, she has given everything she’s got to the basketball, the volleyball and the softball programs,” Parker said. “There are no days off for Harper. Maybe there’s some days that don’t look quite the same, but she has given everything in order to help her team win and that is all this young lady cares about.”
He joked that this recognition was uncomfortable for Schreiner to hear.
“As rare as 1,000 points are, I actually think that finding somebody who gave it their all every single day in every single sport is the rarest thing you can find,” he said before joining her at midcourt for a hug as the crowd chanted her name.
After the team’s 39-24 win over Ottawa, Schreiner said it was “awesome” to see her hard work paying off.
“My teammates are so supportive, and it just meant the world to me,” Schreiner said.
Her mother, Gretchen, said she was incredibly proud of her daughter and happy to see her and her school share this special moment.
“When I got the same milestone, it wasn’t as big of a deal as it is today,” she said. “We didn’t do anything. We kept track of points and that was it. Youth sports are different now than they used to be.”
Gretchen Schreiner achieved her milestone in 1992, ending her career with 1,544 points.
“I’m proud of [Harper] because she has put in a lot of work and as a parent when you see your kid put in the work and get rewarded for it I think it teaches them a valuable lesson,” Gretchen Schreiner said.
Also taking part in the celebration Friday night was Durkin, who received the same 1,000-point milestone in 2004 and ultimately reached 1,418 points.
“It’s an incredible accomplishment that takes a lot of work, effort and energy on your part,” Durkin said. “So the fact that she achieved this after her mom is amazing and amazing to experience that.”
Durkin also hopes to see more students become inspired by this milestone and realize the dedication that comes with it.
Throughout the game, the Cardinals managed to keep the pressure on Ottawa and maintained the lead.
Parker said the team did “OK” and that Ottawa put up a good fight against his team.
“It wasn’t our sharpest game, but this group always finds ways to win and I’m happy for them,” Parker said.
Moving forward, Parker hopes to work with the team on prepping for different defenses and how to better confront them in future games.
Schreiner shared similar thoughts with her coach about the game.
“It definitely wasn’t our best win, but we did what we had to do to get the job done. We were super aggressive on offense, but we lost focus on defense a couple of times. At one point, we were up by 17-points, and we really should’ve taken care of business there,” Schreiner said.
The girls varsity team will play away against Baldwin High School next Friday.
Reach reporter William Crow at [email protected].
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