Jennifer Shacreaw's name is not going to be found at the top of the Atholton Raiders' scoring or minutes-played lists, but on the court and in the locker room, Shacreaw, one of two seniors on the Raiders' 13-9 team this season, is the lifeline to a steady, stable performance and a direct line into what coach Maureen Shacreaw, her mother, is thinking.
Jennifer Shacreaw has scored 27 points and gathered 32 rebounds in 21 games, but according to her mother, that's not where her strength lies.
"It's not the stats that define her importance to the team," said Maureen Shacreaw, who has coached the Raiders for nine years. "She is a leader by example to the younger kids. Our younger kids are our stat leaders this year, but Jen and Leeza Hayes, as seniors, set the tone for what we need to do.
"Jen's growth over the four years has been tremendous. She was a bench player her sophomore year [when Atholton won the state championship]. She rarely got time but always did the things asked. As a junior, she worked herself in to the playing rotation and got minutes in relief and, as a senior, she is a leader who calms them down and sets the tone. You know she will give you quality minutes on the floor."
The coach said her daughter's growth as a role model has come through three years of experience that has included a state championship and a runner-up performance. In the classroom, she has a 3.8 weighted grade point average and plans to attend Lewisburg University in Pennsylvania next year.
Do you like having your mom as your coach?
It's been a lot of fun playing with Mom as the coach. To see how she acts on the court in different situations. We've learned a lot about each other and gotten closer. Sometimes on court, I can see when she's getting mad because I've spent so much time with her on court and outside of school. And I tell people, "Just slow down. She's about to get mad." I can see what she's thinking before she actually has to say it, and we do it, and it's just fun to see how she develops. We all know when she's happy. She starts jumping up and down. But when she's not, she tries to hide it from us.
Do your teammates tease you about being the coach's daughter?
No. It's never really been an issue. It's just I'm there. But during tryouts, she always says, "Do not say your last name, because it makes it easier." I've never had a problem because I've always tried to stay under the radar, so no one knows she's actually my mom [at the start]. I'm just another player.
