Josh with Coach Eilberg after scoring his 1,000th career point
Early in the first quarter of the boys' basketball game against Peddie on Saturday night, team co-captain Josh Heyliger '12 worked his way into open space beyond the three point line, and as he has done countless times during his four years at The Hill put up a perfect jump shot that found nothing but net. This was no ordinary three-pointer, however; this one gave Josh 1,000 points for his high school basketball career and sent the capacity crowd in Gillison Court into a frenzy. The game was temporarily halted so Josh, his team, and the School could celebrate his achievement, as he got a picture with head coach Seth Eilberg and gave the ball that he drained the shot with to his family, which was in the stands watching.
"It means a lot to me," Josh said of his achievement in an interview with Dennis Weller of the
Pottstown Mercury. "I’ve been working hard the last four years and I’m glad it paid off. I don’t like to get too focused on individual goals. I’m thankful for my teammates and coach (Seth) Eilberg and my parents for getting me to this plateau. I’m very lucky … very lucky."
Josh arrived at The Hill as a third former in the fall of 2008 and made an immediate impact on campus. He made the varsity basketball team that year and has been a major key to the team's recent success, including last year's MAPL championship.
"It has been a real pleasure to coach Josh for four years and to see him grow up on this campus," said Eilberg. "This career milestone is a testament to his incredible work ethic and to his commitment to his teammates and to the School. Josh has developed tremendously not just as a player (he made just four three-pointers during his third form season, and made five in one game last week), but also as a positive leader in our program and on campus. We are all very happy for and proud of him."
Unfortunately, Hill never got into a rhythm, shooting just 17 percent from the floor and 13-23 from the free throw line in a 37-32 loss that dropped the team's record to 9-4 overall and 2-2 in the MAPL. The team has a few non-league games to get back on track before the final regular season MAPL game against Mercersburg on February 4 and the MAPL tournament the following weekend. Despite the tough loss, the team remains upbeat as they look to catch fire heading into the post-season tournaments.
"I wish we could have pulled out the win," said Josh. "We'll get them next time, though."