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The senior MHS athlete intercepted a pass in the Thunderbirds' active 2-3 zone Thursday night against Fort Lee and charged her way toward a personal milestone.
The outcome was inevitable as the crowd noise level grew in anticipation with every step as Doran raced down the open court on a solo fast break.
An unchallenged left-handed layup in the third quarter put Doran in the Mahwah record books -- serving as her 1,000th career point -- during the T-Birds' eventual 62-21 win over the Bridgewomen.
“I was nervous going down the court but once I hit the shot, it felt amazing,” said Doran, whose teammates, friends and family stormed the court to celebrate with her following the play.
Doran, an honors student, said she owes her success to Mahwah coach Alan Clements, largely for throwing her into the varsity fire early in her high school career.
“He made me a starting point guard when I was a freshman even though I was inexperienced,” said Doran, who also plays lacrosse. “He gave me a chance to show that I was able to handle it and from there, I continued to grow.”
Balancing sports and academics is something Doran said challenges her the most. She wants to be able to continue to enjoy the sport in college on a club team at a large school.
“I want to go to a big, Division I school with a lot of school spirit,” Doran said. “But I don’t want to give up playing.”
Until then, Doran has set a goal to help teammate Kayla Devine eclipse the 1,000-point plateau as well.
“I’m looking forward to winning more games," she said, "and going to states."
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