Three minutes and 54 seconds into the first quarter of Senior Night, senior and shooting guard Vivian Ong scored the 1000th point of her four-year career on the MVHS Varsity Girls Basketball team. If she could give the moment one song, Ong, a relatively new but passionate Taylor Swift fan, says it would probably be “Wildest Dreams.”
Although she was aware of players on other teams reaching 1000 career points, Ong never thought it would be a possibility for her. However, at the end of her junior year season, senior and basketball team manager Nathan Liu told her that if she averaged about 11 points per game, she could surpass 1000 points by the end of her senior year. Ever since, the team has wholeheartedly supported Ong in reaching the milestone.
“We were always looking for Vivian to get that shot,” point guard and senior Carolyn Ruan said. “Starting from like our game against South San Francisco, we [were] really giddy and planning it like, ‘If you get 20 points against this team, then you only need like this many points left.’”
The team had anticipated her scoring 1000 points within the previous three games, but Ong calls it a “happy coincidence” that she reached her milestone during senior night. Festive countdown posters adorning the gym walls, which had accompanied the team to the previous three games, were finally accompanied by giant purple balloons reading “1000.”
Ong started the game with a career total of 997 points — three points away from her goal. Ruan believed Ong would either reach 1000 with a three-point shot or score one point with a layup. However, neither of those ended up being Ong’s thousandth point. During the first few minutes of the game, Ong narrowed the gap to a single point with an initial layup. After missing a few subsequent shots, Ong caught a rebound and shot it back into the hoop, reaching the 1000-point threshold.
“I called the timeout and all her teammates ran to her,” Head Coach Sara Borelli said. “It was so nice to see her happy, and she gave me the biggest hug.”
The moment was emotional for Borelli, who had seen Ong’s growth from a quiet freshman to a confident, versatile player and energetic team co-captain. Borelli also supported Ong to her goal by having her play as much as possible, giving her the green light to shoot when the opportunity arose.
“The team has been really encouraging,” Ong said. “Everybody wanted me to get to 1000. Knowing how everybody had my back, even if I didn’t get it, I’d still be happy.”
