Twice as nice
Geibel蘑菇视频 Larkin first team All-State again; Brownsville蘑菇视频 Gates also named
Emma Larkin wasn鈥檛 taking anything for granted.
The Geibel Catholic girls basketball star was named to the Pennsylvania Sports Writers鈥� All-State Class A First Team a year ago but that didn鈥檛 mean a repeat was a sure thing.
鈥淵ou don鈥檛 get it for what you did last year,鈥� Larkin said. 鈥淵ou have to work for everything every season.鈥�
Larkin certainly did enough to warrant that honor again 鈥� averaging 26.9 points, 5.7 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 4.2 steals per game as a junior for the Lady Gators 鈥� and the Pa. Sports Writers agreed, naming Larkin to the 2024-25 Class A First Team for the second consecutive year.
鈥淣o, I don鈥檛 want to say it was a surprise but you never know,鈥� Larkin said. 鈥淓ven the second time, it蘑菇视频 still a great feeling to be named First Team All-State.鈥�
Larki蘑菇视频 coach and mother, Sara Larkin, felt the same way.
鈥淭here蘑菇视频 never any guarantees so you never really know,鈥� Sara Larkin said. 鈥淲e were pleasantly surprised when we saw she was First Team again.鈥�
Emma Larkin, a 5-foot-5 point guard, was the area蘑菇视频 leading scorer and finished second in the WPIAL behind Clairton senior Iyanna Wade, who averaged over 41 points per game and was named the All-State Class A Player of the Year.
The second-leading scorer among local players was Brownsville junior Skyler Gates, who averaged 20.7 points per game during the regular season. Gates was also named to the All-State team, landing on the Class 3A Third Team.
Sara Larkin felt Geibel蘑菇视频 improvement this year overall as a team likely helped keep Larkin蘑菇视频 name at the top of the All-State list.
鈥淭eam success definitely helps,鈥� she said. 鈥淭he fact the team did really well this year, finally getting a playoff win, winning the section title, making the state playoffs,鈥� Larkin said. 鈥淥bviously the program is getting a little more attention.
鈥淪he has a little more help around her now as well, and that boosted the team and boosted Emma蘑菇视频 stats, too. I know a lot of people don鈥檛 pay much attention to anything other than points, but when you see her assists, her steals, her rebounds, those numbers are all improving. Maybe the public doesn鈥檛 see that but the coaches see that.鈥�
Emma Larkin lauded her teammates.
鈥淚 can鈥檛 do anything without my team,鈥� she said. 鈥淚n basketball you have four other girls on the court with you. I can鈥檛 play one on five, that will never work. Having Mallory (Clemmer) and Janiah (Darnell), the two bigs, that was especially important and it took a lot of stress off of me this year.鈥�
Larkin continues to work on her game, even now during her travel league season.
鈥淚 tend to be strong at driving to the hoop and ball handling and I still work on those things to keep sharp on that, but where I have room for improvement is pull-up jumpers and 3s so I鈥檝e definitely still been focusing on that aspect of my game,鈥� said Larkin, who finished the high school season at 1,909 career points.
Gates, a 6-4 center, had goals of getting close to or reaching 1,000 career points and helping the Lady Falcons make the WPIAL playoffs for the second year in a row, and she accomplished both.
鈥淭he 1,000 points, which I wasn鈥檛 sure I would get this year, was big for me and then we wanted to go back to the playoffs,鈥� Gates said. 鈥淚 wasn鈥檛 really thinking about making All-State. I was a bit shocked when I heard I made it.
鈥淚鈥檓 proud of how far I鈥檝e come in basketball and I鈥檓 grateful to be named to the All-State team.鈥�
Gates is the first Brownsville player to be named All-State in girls basketball since Maris Seto in 2016.
Ironically, basketball isn鈥檛 even Gates鈥� best sport. She蘑菇视频 a Virginia volleyball recruit and also was named All-State in that sport in the fall.
鈥淚t蘑菇视频 a tremendous honor for her,鈥� Brownsville girls basketball coach Patty Columbia said. 鈥淪kyler probably could鈥檝e gone D-1 in basketball had she not made the choice to go the volleyball route.鈥�
Gates is currently a starter on the Lady Falcons softball team.
鈥淭hat蘑菇视频 just how good of an athlete she is,鈥� said Columbia, who pointed out Gates鈥� favorite sport used to be softball.
鈥淚nterestingly enough, when Skyler was young that was her sport. I was coaching some summer teams and I saw her and said wow this girl蘑菇视频 unbelievable. She was a catcher.鈥�
Gates confirmed.
鈥淲hen I was younger I was obsessed with softball,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 wasn鈥檛 playing volleyball yet. Basketball was like just for fun. Softball was really my main thing back then.鈥�
Now she蘑菇视频 a three-sport star hoping to make it three-for-three in reaching the playoffs this year.
鈥淭hat would be huge,鈥� Gates said.
The Lady Falcons鈥� softball team currently is atop the section standings.
While she concentrates on volleyball most of the time now, she still manages to stay involved in basketball.
鈥淚鈥檒l go to the gym once in a while and still try to work on my basketball game,鈥� Gates said. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 exactly always have time for it but I do my best to keep up with it.鈥�
Gates opened plenty of eyes during Brownsville蘑菇视频 playoff loss to eventual WPIAL champion Greensburg Central Catholic this past basketball season. She scored a team-high 17 points and gave the Lady Centurions enough problems inside to draw praise from GCC coach Chris Skatell.
鈥淗e came up to me after the game and just marveled about Skyler,鈥� Columbia said. 鈥淚 think that playoff game helped get her some more notoriety in basketball. Greensburg went on to win the WPIAL title. I think having that exposure with a lot more people having a chance to see her play against that good of competition probably helped her make All-State.鈥�
Gates agreed
鈥淯sually you hear about me in volleyball,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 think that GCC game definitely got my name out there a little more prominently maybe for basketball.鈥�
Gates holds Columbia in high regard.
鈥淚 love her. She always keeps me on track,鈥� Gates said. 鈥淚f I鈥檓 getting frustrated during a game she蘑菇视频 able to calm me down and make sure I get my focus back.鈥�
Columbia, who also is an assistant softball coach under Jane Bock, admires Gates as well.
鈥淎s talented as she is, she蘑菇视频 just as much a sweetheart,鈥� Columbia said. 鈥淚 mean Skyler is just a wonderful girl.鈥�