Emma Brown scores 1,000th point, looks ahead after strong Charter career
WILMINGTON, Del. (BVM) – The 1,000th point for Charter School of Wilmington senior Emma Brown’s career certainly didn’t go as planned. During the team’s Delaware Interscholastic Athletic Association girls basketball quarterfinal against Ursuline Academy on March 7, Brown was closing in on the career mark and had put up 16 points during the contest, putting her just two points and one basket shy of the 1,000 point plateau.
However, Brown went down with a left knee injury in the fourth quarter, making her chances to reach 1,000 points seem slim.
“I had no idea I was two points away from 1,000 points, that was a complete shock to me,” Brown said. “My coach’s husband, Matt Voltz who works at DOS, asked if I felt pain and I said, ‘Yeah, I’m in a lot of pain.’ He said you’re two points away from 1,000 points.”
Thankfully for Brown, she had allies on the sidelines. Charter head coach Eileen Voltz approached Ursuline head coach John Noonan to discuss the possibility of getting Brown to the milestone without her further injuring herself. With his team up by a significant margin, Noonan was happy to oblige and allow Brown to reach the point many high school athletes dream about.
“[Matt Voltz] asked me, ‘Do you want to go in and make a layup and play or do you want to sit here?’” Brown said. “I obviously had to go in and make my two points for my 1,000 points.”
Brown was subbed in with a minute left in the game and with 15 seconds left on the clock, she was given a clear path to the hoop to score her 1,000th point. Her teammates cheered and swarmed her and were happy to celebrate that moment even in spite of the loss, bringing out signs and taking pictures with their beloved teammate.
“I was waiting for this for four years,” Brown said. “I knew that’s what I wanted to do in basketball. So hitting it, especially with the team I had this year is just amazing and I’m so happy I could do it…Everything just left. I didn’t think about the game anymore. I didn’t care that we lost. I was happy with our season. I was happy to be with the girls.”
The moment puts a fitting bow on the end of Brown’s fantastic career with the Forces. A three-time all-conference and two-time all-state representative, Brown has proven again and again why she is considered among the best players in Delaware. This year was no different for the senior as she helped Charter to a 16-3 record and a No. 3 seed in the tournament while leading the team in scoring in at least 12 games including five 20 point games. This will likely put her in position to once again earn some postseason recognition.
“I love basketball, I love playing, it’s my escape and playing at Charter fulfills the dream of being a basketball player,” Brown said. “I know if I played anywhere else I wouldn’t have the same love of basketball I do now after these four years.”
Though her career at Charter is wrapped up, Brown’s basketball journey is not over yet. Brown is set to play in the Blue-Gold all-star high school basketball game on March 19 which pits the state’s top seniors from New Castle County schools against players representing Kent and Sussex counties, with a few exceptions. Brown will be a part of the Blue team, depending on the severity of the injury she sustained in her final game, where she will be coached by Eileen Voltz who is handling the Blue team head coaching duties.
“I am hoping to play, but I’m not sure my knee will let me,” Brown said. “It’s just like the NBA All-Star game and it’s exactly what I want to do. I want to play with the best girls and be with the best girls too.”
Even if she doesn’t play in the Blue-Gold game, Brown plans on continuing to play basketball at the next level. The 5-foot-9 guard has drummed up attention through her play both with Charter and her AAU team, the Fencor girls basketball club out of Bensalem, Pennsylvania. Though she hasn’t made an official decision yet, she is down to her final two, Cabrini College and Lebanon Valley College.
“[I’m looking for] a good community and a good team,” Brown said. “If I’m on a team where none of them know me or none of them like me then I won’t play the game I know how to play. It’d be a completely different environment. I found that at both Lebanon Valley and Cabrini, they are just amazing places to be, great people and great coaches so that’s why I’m sticking with those two.”
With her high school basketball career now finished, Brown will be able to look back on her time with Charter with pride. Thanks to some help from some colleagues, she is a 1,000 point scorer, an all-state member and a Delaware all-star. Given her talents on the basketball court, expect Brown to find a home at the next level sooner than later. Whatever team is fortunate enough to land her services will be a lucky one.
“I just like to make [the game] as fun as possible,” Brown said. “It’s a game in the end, it’s not a life or death scenario. We’re here to have fun, nothing’s holding us back…just having fun during the game because that’s all you really can do.”
