Twelve players in Glen Rock basketball’s history have reached 1,000 points in their high school careers. The most recent to accomplish this feat is senior Kelly Lohr, whose hard work since she began playing has paid off.

This accomplishment is just one of many that Lohr has achieved since joining the varsity basketball team her freshman year. She has helped the team win three consecutive NJIC Colonial championships, scoring more than 100 points each season and receiving First Team All-League both her sophomore and junior year.

Lohr said that her most recent accomplishment is one that she has thought about for quite some time.

“I was just playing my game throughout the years,” Lohr said. “It was definitely a personal goal of mine in the back of my head, but we had team goals that were also very important to me.”

Lohr began her basketball career when she was in third grade through the Glen Rock Basketball Association’s recreational league. The next year, she began playing travel for Glen Rock. In her freshman year, she started playing for the girls varsity team. She began her impressive high school career soon after stepping onto the court.

In Lohr’s first game, she scored seven points in a home game against Elmwood Park. Throughout the remainder of that season, as well as the next two seasons after that, Lohr proved that her dominant start was anything but a fluke.

On Jan. 15, 2017, Glen Rock faced off against River Dell. Lohr entered the game with 994 career points, hoping to become only the sixth girl in Glen Rock history to reach the 1,000-point club.

“I needed six points coming into the game,” Lohr said. “I personally had a rough start, and I was also nervous because it was a big game.”

With the clock running out in the second quarter, Lohr needed just more point. She got the ball off an inbound pass and took a jump shot as the buzzer sounded. Lohr watched the 1,000th point swish through the basket.

“It was a little overwhelming at first,” Lohr said. “That moment made me realize all my hard work paid off.”

Glen Rock went on to win that game 39-32. Lohr finished the game with 12 points.

Aside from her skills on the court, Lohr is best known by her teammates as a leader and someone who always brings a positive attitude to games and practices.

“I think she’s very humble about all her successes, and as a teammate she’s a very great leader,” said Vicky Rasmussen (’17), who has played with Lohr for the past seven years. “She’s great at making sure we all keep our heads and that we don’t get down on ourselves if we make mistakes.”

According to Rasmussen, the 1,000th point made Lohr’s teammates appreciate her hard work and realize the opportunity they were being given to play with someone who is so dedicated to the team.

“I think as a team we all felt really lucky to be able to be with her through her journey to her 1,000th point,” Rasmussen said.

Despite her personal success, Lohr still has future goals in mind for her team in her final season in a Glen Rock uniform. The team is currently in first place in its league and is looking to win the league championships for the fifth consecutive year. Lohr also hopes to lead her team to a state championship. Since joining the team, Lohr and her teammates have fallen in the second round of states three years in a row.

Regardless of the outcome, Lohr is still proud of all that she has achieved as a player and a teammate while in the Glen Rock uniform.

“All my teammates were so supportive. I couldn’t ask for better teammates and friends who came out to watch us play,” Lohr said. “It was definitely one of the more exciting moments in my high school basketball career.”