W. Basketball's McMahon Breaks SJC Record (LI Advance)
12/14/2009
LONG ISLAND ADVANCE
December 10, 2009
Patchogue-Medford HS graduate becomes St. Joseph’s College’s all-time leading scorer
By Mark Nolan - http://www.longislandadvance.net/index.php
For St. Joseph’s College senior Trish McMahon, success isn’t something you wait for—you aggressively go after it. That attitude has helped her on and off the basketball court.
McMahon, a women’s basketball player who graduated from Patchogue-Medford High School in 2006, became the college’s all-time leading scorer last Tuesday night in the second half of a 75-68 loss to Farmingdale State. McMahon scored the 1,059th and the 1,060th points of her career at 14:26 in the second half, and scored again later to become the college’s highest-scoring women’s basketball player.
McMahon currently has 1,099 points scored in her collegiate career. She surpassed Adrienne Oliveri, who held the record with 1,060 points and played for the Lady Eagles from 1999-2003.
“If you want something, you have to work hard and go get it.” McMahon said. “I didn’t get a full academic ride because I sat there. My mom made me take the SATs four times. I work very, very hard but I’m also hungry for success. That’s why on the basketball court, it’s never enough. I can never get enough of getting better.”
McMahon plays a physical, inside game where points and rebounds are hard to come by. She is often double-teamed but still manages to average double-digits in points. It’s that tough-as-nails mentality that has helped her be so successful in basketball but also in the classroom. McMahon is studying to become an elementary school teacher. She is currently student-teaching in the Bayport-Blue Point School District and has a 3.9 GPA at St. Joseph’s. “That’s the underlying theme of my life; be aggressive,” she said. “There’s not a timid bone in my body.”
McMahon said she was predominately a defensive player in high school until her junior year when she realized how fun scoring points is. Now, she’s continuing to evolve by working on her passing game. “I love to pass,” she said. “I have to work hard for my points, so if I can pass, it helps me score more, but I love to help my teammates.”
The transition from high school to college was tough, McMahon said, especially on the basketball court. “The length of the season is just absolutely exhausting,” she said. “You practice for a month and then the games just keep coming at you. And the workload with school is much different. You have to be extremely detail-oriented and manage your time. You have to be a certain type of person to excel as a collegiate student-athlete.”
McMahon said female athletes in high school should work hard now if they want to play basketball or any sport in college while maintaining good grades. “Don’t be afraid to ask for help,” she said. “Don’t think anything is going to come easy; it won’t. You have to work for it. Find a college that fits you. I had other offers and maybe I could have even gone D1, but I knew my; goal was to become a teacher and use basketball to help me and have fun. St. Joseph’s was the perfect school for me. I had the most amazing four years and I would recommend St. Joseph’s to anyone.”
This year, the Lady Eagles are 2-2 overall, and McMahon has already made a big impact. Twice this season she was named honorable mention for weekly honors in the Skyline Conference. She averaged a double-double in the first three games of the year and scored 18 points in the double-overtime win in the first game of the season. She is currently ranked eighth in the Skyline Conference with 63 points and tied for eighth in the conference with 35 total rebounds.
