Upper Dublin senior Curtrena Goff surpassed the 1,000-point milestone in Saturday’s district win over Ridley.
By Mary Jane Souder
Curtrena Goff served early notice that she would be something special.
In the debut of Upper Dublin’s brand new gymnasium in December of 2009, Goff – then just a freshman – dazzled the fans with her moves as she scored a team-high 14 points in the Flying Cardinals’ home opener against Cheltenham.
“I was a freshman, I had never played before, and I came out on fire,” Goff recalled. “My brother was like, ‘Tuga, you have to score 10 points a game to reach a thousand.’ After that, I believed I could.”
Goff reached the 1,000-point milestone in the first half of Upper Dublin’s win over Ridley in Saturday’s opening round game of the District One AAAA Tournament. The magical moment came late in the first half when Goff, who needed 11 points, scored a basket in transition.
“It seemed like she made three people fall on the other side of half court,” coach Morgan Funsten said of the sequence leading up to the historic basket. “Eventually, she drove to her left and in traffic made a layup.
“The crowd and the girls on the bench knew where she was at in terms of total points. It was nice because she’s meant so much to Upper Dublin basketball the last four years.”
The game was halted for a brief celebration, but the senior point guard was more relieved than excited to have the historic basket out of the way.
“It was crazy,” she said. “I had my sister (Curtrisha Goff) on the sidelines. I had the Renegades organization – the owner was there, and they were counting down for me, so I knew exactly where I was.
“Going into the game, it was like, ‘Tuga, everyone is here. You’ve got to score 11 points.’ When I got to the gym, I wasn’t nervous at all, but I couldn’t make a shot.”
Goff did not score a point in the opening quarter but reeled off 11 in the second.
“I really wasn’t thinking about it, but I just couldn’t make a shot,” she said. “I couldn’t even get a shot off. It was impossible.
“I don’t know why. It was like I never played basketball before. I just felt terrible. I was at the gym the night before shooting with my old coach, Vince Catanzaro, and I thought my shots would fall, but they just were not. When I got to nine, I was like, ‘Come on, Tuga, one more basket.’ I could not shoot. When I finally got it, I wasn’t even happy. I walked over and I was like, ‘Thank you, Jesus.’ It felt like a huge weight was off my shoulders.”
Goff has been playing basketball since she was seven years old, and she began playing AAU basketball for former coach Vince Catanzaro and the Renegades around that time as well. She has been a mainstay in the Flying Cardinals’ lineup since she walked on the court as a freshman.
“She’s obviously a great basketball player,” Funsten said. “It’s pretty great she scored a thousand because most of the time she’ll wow you with her unselfishness and her passing and everything else like that.
“The fact that she was able to get a thousand points with as unselfish as she’s been over the years is very impressive.”
According to Funsten, Goff is more than just a gifted basketball player.
“She’s a special kid,” the first-year coach said. “Being a teacher in the high school, the other day I saw her in another math teacher’s room helping teach algebra to freshmen.
“It was during one of her study halls. She had nothing else to do, so she decided to help out a teacher she has a good relationship with. She’s a nice kid, she’s a really good-natured funny kid.”
Under the leadership of Goff, this year’s squad has rolled to a 22-1 record and an American Conference title. The Flying Cardinals are the third-seeded team in the district.
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