Council Rock North senior Jessica Gerber surpassed the 1,000-point milestone in last Thursday’s win over Bensalem.
By Mary Jane Souder
Lou Palkovics can’t talk about Jessica Gerber without mentioning her remarkable work ethic, and when the Council Rock North standout is on the court, she has a singular focus.
So it’s hardly surprising that she wasn’t quite sure how to react when she was mobbed by jubilant teammates after she buried a three-pointer late in the first half of Thursday’s Senior Night game against visiting Bensalem.
The basket vaulted the senior captain over the 1,000-point milestone.
“It felt kind of weird because it was in the middle of the game, and I was running back on defense,” Gerber said. “We were setting up our full court trap.
“They stopped the game, and it was still a close game.”
It’s hardly unusual that Gerber’s first thought was about the game. The senior guard is defined by her intensity on the hardwood, and she went on to score 18 points – which included four three-pointers - in the Indians’ 69-30 win over the Owls.
“It was really nice,” she said. “It was so many different emotions – it was the emotion from the game, and it was Senior Night.
“I was really excited, but at the same time, it was overwhelming. I had a lot of family come to that game. My extended family doesn’t get to come to games, and they were there. I think I was overwhelmed with that too.
“I think the best part of the night was my teammates – they were so supportive, and they kept passing me the ball. It was really nice. That’s what made it so good.”
Gerber is the ninth female in program history to reach the historic 1,000-point mark.
“It’s not an easy thing to do, especially when you’re playing teams where a lot of the focus was on her the last two years especially,” Palkovics said. “We’re continually running into box-and-one’s and diamond-and-one’s. Everybody is focused on her.
“I think that makes her thousand points that much more difficult.”
Gerber entered Thursday’s game needing eight points to reach the milestone.
“I didn’t want to know how many I needed because I felt I wouldn’t play the same way,” she said. “I just wanted to keep playing normal basketball.
“Everybody was trying to tell me the day before, and I kept saying, ‘Don’t tell me, I don’t want to know.’ I knew it was close, and I knew it was under double digits.”
It was appropriate that the senior sharpshooter’s historic basket came from beyond the arc since that has been her trademark shot.
“I was coming off of a pick, and Emily Mackin gave me a really fast, sharp pass,” Gerber said. “It was the perfect pass, and I was able to get the shot off.
“As soon as it went in, the student started screaming, and one of my teammates – Michaela Finneyfrock – had people make posters, so they all held them up. The game stopped, and I was so overwhelmed by everything. Everyone told me I didn’t even smile, which I feel really bad about, but I think I was just so surprised.”
Gerber is a rare four-year starter for the Indians, and she is the first three-year captain under Palkovics. Her contributions go well beyond the court.
“She’s like another assistant coach,” Palkovics said. “Her work ethic is so intense that it just a good tone for all the younger kids.
“She just made my job a little easier.”
If there was a change in the practice schedule, Palkovics simply notified Gerber, and she did the rest, notifying the players.
“She’s just as intense in practice as she is in a game, and it just makes practice much more productive,” Palkovics said. “Do we have our fun practices? We certainly do. We had a senior practice on Friday, and they planned the practice. They had a ball.
“When we’re practicing and getting ready for games, she’s very intense, and she keeps everybody focused. She’s been a blessing for us.”
Gerber has been playing organized basketball since she was in second grade.
“I just liked it right way,” she said. “My older sister played. She stopped halfway through high school, but I would always go to her games and watch.
“I liked it right away. I think I really started liking it the first year I played AAU in third grade. I just liked how much fun it was.”
Gerber played for the same AAU team for her entire career – the Lower Bucks Lightening, and working hard at her sport came naturally to Gerber.
“High school is a very different level than middle school, and if you want to play as a freshman, you have to work twice as hard,” the 5-4 senior guard said. “Especially because I’m smaller, I had to perfect my shot.
“It’s a lot of being at practice early, and on Sundays when we have off, I go to the NAC (Newtown Athletic Club) with my dad, and we just shoot for about an hour just until I get the form down.
“I’m not one of the faster kids, so I had to work at my speed, and in the offseason, I just worked on conditioning.”
Next year, Gerber will be attending Kenyon College where she will continue her basketball career.
“Jessica is part of a great senior group that are really close and are all really productive,” Palkovics said. “She’s really close to that group, and I think that’s really helped her also.”
For Gerber, scoring a thousand points is just a bonus for playing a sport she loves.
“It wasn’t until the beginning of my junior year I thought it could be a possibility,” she said. “Junior year was kind of a rough year for me. It was a transition year, and I had to learn to do more than shoot the three.
“This year I knew it was possible, but I think what really helped is I never put that ahead of winning. I think that allowed me to play my game more. It was a goal, but it happened because I had teammates that supported me, and we were just focused on winning.”
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