Methacton senior hits 1,000 at the buzzer

FLOURTOWN >> As the referee signaled for two free throws, Grace Niekelski couldn’t stop a smile from crossing her face.

The Mount Saint Joseph Academy junior knew she only needed one to reach 1,000 career points and with it being a dead ball, a make would give her a chance to celebrate the accomplishment on the court. With an otherwise raucous crowd silent and plenty of cameras trained on her, Niekelski’s first free throw caught a bit of back iron but went in without a hitch to reach the milestone.

Niekelski finished with 15 points as the Magic edged rival Gwynedd Mercy Academy 46-41

Tuesday, a fitting cap to a banner day.

“I was just so happy I could do this with my team against our biggest rival,” Niekelski said. “It’s just so exciting, it’s amazing that it happened it this early.”

Niekelski, a 6-foot hybrid guard/forward, has been a centerpiece for the Mount since her freshman year. A fluid opencourt scorer, the junior’s halfcourt game has improved plenty in the last three seasons by adding a solid outside shot, strong midrange game and even post scoring.

One of those players every opponent pays attention to, Niekelski knew the Monarchs would be guarding her closely all game Tuesday. She needed just eight points to reach 1,000 at the

start of Tuesday’s game but didn’t try to force the issue early.

“I knew I shouldn’t rush it and my teammates were playing so well there wasn’t any point to me rushing shots just for my own benefit,” Niekelski said. “I knew I’d get it at some point and my team was there for me the whole time.”

Niekelski became the first Magic player to reach the 1,000-point threshold since 2016 graduate Libby Tacka, who went on to play at Army.

Her first hoop was also the Mount’s first score, a breakout layup with 4:22 left in the opening quarter. Nikelski added a three in the second quarter and got another hard-charging layup with 3:35 left in the half but had to settle for being a point short at the intermission.

It didn’t take long for the chance to arrive, as Niekelski drew a shooting foul trying for a midrange shot in the lane with 7:05 left in the third.

“I knew if it was a dead ball, they’d have to stop the game, so it was exciting it came on a foul shot,” Niekelski said. “I knew I only need one point.

“My teammates from freshman, sophomore and junior year helped me get here and it’s not all me, they make me better.”