TURNERS FALLS — Hannah Gilbert added her name to the banners at Franklin County Technical School on Tuesday. 

The Eagles senior entered Tuesday’s game against Pioneer sitting at 987 career points and it didn’t take long for her to get there. 

Gilbert got going right away, knocking down a jumper for the first basket of the contest. She closed the first quarter with an and-one, sitting at five points after eight minutes. 

It was all Gilbert in the second quarter. She opened the frame with a pair of steals which she converted to easy layups before swishing a 3-pointer that gave the Eagles a 24-14 lead to put her one point shy of hitting the milestone. 

On the ensuing possession, Gilbert got the ball on the right wing. She drove to the basket, euro-stepped around a defender and finished through the contact, the score allowing her to eclipse the 1,000 point milestone for her career. The Eagles cruised to a 55-29 Franklin County League South victory.

“I just wanted to go in and play my own game and play normal,” Gilbert said. “I couldn’t have done this without the rest of my team. Last year and the past three years we just move the ball until we get a good look. That’s the whole reason why I score and why everyone scores. Every game there’s a different high scorer.” 

Gilbert becomes the 10th Franklin Tech player and the fourth girl in program history to hit the mark. The last Tech player to topple 1,000 points was Colin Gould in 2017.

It’s certainly not the only sports milestone of Gilbert’s career, as she also hit the 100 point mark in field hockey as a junior. 

“Hannah has come a long way,” Franklin Tech coach Joe Gamache said. “She did score a few points in eighth grade and that helped. She’s probably the most unselfish 1,000 point scorer in the history of 1,000 point scorers. She’s the ultimate teammate. She benefits from the teammates she’s had over the years and has no problem sharing the ball. It’s not like she just takes it all into her own hands. 

“Team success is always her number one goal,” Gamache added. “We’re fortunate she’s a three-sport athlete and she has excelled in all three sports. She’s excelled in the classroom, she’s excelled as a leader and she’s a great teammate. This is huge for her and huge for the program.” 

Gilbert got started at Mohawk Trail as an eighth grader, where she scored 41 points in the COVID-shortened season. She made the move to Franklin Tech for her freshman year and made an instant impact, scoring 265 points her first year as an Eagle. 

A 275 point sophomore season was followed by a 343 point junior season with Tech, as Gilbert helped lead the Eagles to an MIAA Div. 5 Round of 16 appearance. 

Gilbert scored 73 points in Franklin Tech’s eight games this season to come into Tuesday’s contest with 987 career points. 

An unselfish player, Gilbert was happy to get the milestone out of the way to focus on the rest of the game. 

“Everybody was more excited for me than I was for myself because it didn’t feel real,” Gilbert said. “Once everyone stopped talking about it it was fine and we just played.” 

Gilbert led the charge with 19 points while Kyler McClelland tallied 10 points and Kiara Gruszkowski added eight points for Pioneer.