A large crowd gathered at Harrisburg High School in Harrisburg, Illinois, on Thursday, Jan. 29, as the all-time points scored record was on the verge of being broken. Senior Jamisen Green was 11 points away from sitting atop the school’s leaderboard as the Bulldogs got set to host the Carterville Lions in front of a packed gym. 

“This is the biggest crowd we’ve had, and I was just very nervous,” Green said.

The game started, and fans kept their eyes on jersey No. 4 as she traversed the court. Green first knocked down a free throw, a layup and a floater, bringing her game total to 5 points. The first half was coming to a close, and with another made free throw, Green was up to 6 points at the break. 

20 minutes had passed, and all 20 of those minutes involved Green on the floor. She said that she is used to getting this amount of playing time.

“She is the hardest worker we’ve had here, and I have been here for 15 years,” head coach Jake Stewart said. 

The second half was underway, and a mere 5 points stood between Green and school history. After a few minutes, Green swiped the ball from the Lions and finished the fast break with a clean layup to hit double-digit scoring. 

“She is the leader of our team offensively, and people don’t understand that she is also a really good defender, and that she has to guard the other team’s best player most nights,” Stewart noted. 

One point was all Green needed to break the record, and the anticipation in the crowd was palpable. The ball was in her hands, and Green rose and drained another floater, followed by an instant uproar from the audience. The game stopped for a brief celebration, and it was all smiles in Harrisburg. 

“It felt amazing, I know that all my hard work was worth it in the end,” Green said.

The previous record of 2067 points, set by Laura Thompson in 2006, was overtaken by Green, who finished the game with 14 points. She now sits at an all-time total of 2071 points after their 42-24 win over Carterville. 

“She gets up early, she comes in early and she stays late. If you put in the type of effort that she has done, then you’ll get the results that she has,” Stewart said. 

Not only has the hard work been a key factor in her success, but Green has also had a lot of support throughout her basketball career and journey to this milestone. 

“All of my coaches, teammates and my dad, Chris, have really helped me a lot,” Green said.  

Harrisburg High School sits in first place in the Southern Illinois River-to-River Conference with a record of 18-5. Coach Stewart attributed a lot of the recent success to the talent of Green. 

“It’s been a blessing having her play for me and in our program,” Stewart said. 

Jamisen Green has seven games left of the season and of her high school career. She will look to build upon her new record and further cement her name in Harrisburg High School history. 

Sports Reporter Noah Petschke can be reached at [email protected]

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