Early in Grace Christian Academy Cougars’ Monday night basketball game against the Emmanuel Warriors, a young player reached a milestone in his career.
Sophomore forward Jack McRae scored his one-thousandth point with a quick drive down the court and a lay up. McRae is the 14th player in Grace Christian Academy history to achieve the award.
“It’s just been a lot of hard work,” McRae said after the game. “I’ve been trying to overcome a lot of size differences. But you just have to put in the work to get it done.”
McRae came into the game only needing four more points to reach the milestone. After McRae scored the lay up, the game was paused as he was recognized for his outstanding points record.
Despite the award, McRae wasn’t as happy as he wished he could have been. The Cougars had just taken a hard-to-swallow 79-69 loss against the Warriors.
“It feels good, but I wish we could have had a win tonight,” McRae said. “That would have made all the difference.”
Cougars head coach Tommy Yancey was proud of the work McRae has put in during his short tenure as varsity player. Just a sophomore, McRae has two more years as a Cougar, and even more goals to reach.
“I’m glad I get to have him for two more years,” Yancey said. “He’s a special kid. He’s just one of those kids that you love to coach. He’s going to do what you ask him to do. He’s going to play as hard as he can as long as he can. He does all the right things. I’m really happy that he gets to have that afford.”
The next goal for McRae is a simple one.
“Honestly, I just want a state championship,” he said.