Louisville girls basketball star Brooke Haren surprises herself with a school record
Louisville senior Brooke Haren wasn't able to play in the OHSAA girls basketball tournament last year because of a broken ankle.
Haren made up for lost time on Thursday when the Leopards continued their tournament run this year by hosting Chaney in a Division I, Northeast 4 sectional final.
Haren set the school single-game postseason scoring record with 27 points to lead the Leopards to a sectional title with a 74-37 win over Chaney. The previous record was 26 set by Alicia Knouff against Akron East in 2002.
"I think this was a bit of redemption for her," Louisville head coach Dan Moody said. "That's the word that immediately pops into my mind. I wasn't the head coach last year, but I was at the games and seeing her forced to stay on the bench like that was excruciating."
What struck Moody most about that tournament run last year wasn't Haren's inability to play. It was her behavior during that time.
"You could tell it was excruciating for her but she was such an amazing teammate during that time," Moody said. "I remember seeing her cheering on her teammates and giving them advice. She was an incredible leader. Now she's still an incredible leader but she's also at the top of her game right now."
It would be hard to argue that. Haren also had a team-high 10 rebounds to register a double-double for Louisville. Her huge game helped the Leopards advance to the district semifinals.
"She's a leader on the team and a real leader in the community," Moody said. "All the little girls in the youth program really look up to her. It's a role she is comfortable with and really embraces. She really seeks out opportunities to work with them and help them along in their development. We're really proud of her and happy she will be heading off to Ursuline to play college basketball."
For Haren's part, the injury last year gave her a new perspective on sports.
"It made me not just appreciate basketball more but it made me appreciate all the sports I play in more," Haren said. "I play three sports and my goal since that injury has just been to cherish every moment in all of them. This was likely our last home game in this gym for example. It's a bittersweet moment I've really been reflecting on after the game."
Haren also is quick to defer credit to her teammates.
"Getting the record tonight was a real surprise for me," Haren said. "Nobody told me I was close to it. I didn't even find out until after the game. I'm just extremely blessed. I have to give my teammates credit for making it happen. Courtney Barwick and the rest of the girls made a lot of outside shots to open things up for me. It really was a team effort and a team accomplishment."
Barwick added 22 points and nine rebounds for Louisville. Chayne Cline also had eight rebounds for the Leopards. No. 16-seeded Louisville advances to play No. 18 Mentor on Tuesday at Valley Forge High School. That will be an issue to think about on another day. Thursday was all about living in the moment.
"I'm just feeling a lot of gratitude for everything right now," Haren said. "I am super grateful that I get to continue playing with this group of girls. The last four years as a whole have been a crazy ride and I'm so blessed to have been on it. This gym and our fans mean so much to me. They are our sixth man and I appreciate all the support they have given us."
Reach Cliff at cliff.hickman@cantonrep.com
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This article originally appeared on The Repository: Brooke Haren sets Louisville record for points in tournament game
