Leila Hurley has proved that she’s pretty good at shooting a basketball.

Since she was young, the Jim Thorpe junior wore out the nets at Jim Thorpe Memorial Park, taking shot after shot, practicing her craft with her older brother and father.

On Wednesday, all those shots at the park paid off as Hurley surpassed 1,000 career points in a Schuylkill League Division 1 victory at Panther Valley.

Hurley needed just five points entering the game against the Panthers and fittingly enough, she collected the milestone by hitting a triple from the left wing. Her 1,000th-point came in the same gym where she set an Olympians girls’ single-game record for three-pointers a season ago when she made eight.

“Since I was a little kid, I’ve put up a lot of shots at the park with my dad and brother. I lost a lot of one-on-one games to both of them, but they have always pushed me and all that time up there, in my alley and in the gym have helped me get here,” said Hurley. “This is something I was definitely working for, and it feels great. I just want to thank my teammates and coaches and my parents. I wouldn’t have accomplished this without their help, and without them pushing me to get better.”

Hurley’s ability to hit from deep has been a big reason for her offensive production. The lefty sniper burst onto the scene as a freshman with 50 triples, added 43 more in her sophomore campaign, and currently has 32 this season, equaling an impressive 125 total three-pointers to date.

What’s even more extraordinary about Hurley’s shooting ability is her career three-point shooting percentage, which is a remarkable 41%, including near 50% from beyond the arc this season. Hurley is also a career 73% foul shooter on a total of 240 free throw attempts.

“As I continued to work and put up more and more shots, my confidence definitely has grown over the years shooting the ball. I’ve been shooting the ball pretty well this year, and I want to give a shout out to my shooting coach Damian Fritz for helping me tweak some things to help me become an even better shooter,” said Hurley. “My teammates have also been great, finding me and looking for me out on the court. I’ve been playing with Olivia (Smelas), Skyler (Searfoss), Leah (Snisky) and many others for years now, and they always do a good job of finding me out there.”

Hurley was predominantly a three-point assassin in her impressive freshman campaign when she averaged 12.1 points per game, with 150 of her 338 points coming from beyond the arc. But over the past two seasons she has expanded her skill set, adding the dribble-drive game to her offensive arsenal. Hurley went from 66 two-point field goals as a freshman to 107 as a sophomore, and improved her points per game average by almost four points (15.8), which led the team a year ago. Hurley is averaging just under 16 points per game this season.

The junior has also dramatically improved her ball handling over the past two seasons, which has made the Olympians more versatile, giving them another option when teams try to apply full-court pressure.

“Over the past few summers I worked really hard to improve those parts of my game, and I really pushed myself because I knew it would make us a better team,” said Hurley. “This milestone is great and everything, but I just want us to play well and win and advance through district and states.

“That’s the big picture goal. I also have to give credit to Skyler. She’s one of the best ballhandlers in our area, and she pushes me at practice every day to get better.”

Hurley is a prime example to any athlete that for those who put in the reps, the time and the work, positive things will happen.

“Leila’s ability to shoot the ball at the level she does is a testament to the hours and hours of practice she has put in,” said Jim Thorpe head coach Nadia Gauronsky. “It’s great to see her accomplish this, and it shows that hard work pays off.

“She’s a tremendous player and person. She, as well as her teammates, have made coaching this team this season a great experience. It’s been a pleasure to coach her.”