‘An amazing experience:’ Guilfoyle’s Gofus cherishes moment as lone senior
Trending
HERSHEY -- Over the years, there have been some close calls with players nearly dropping the PIAA team championship trophy after it is handed over by officials.
No worries there after the Class 1A girls title victory by Bishop Guilfoyle Academy on Friday over Linville Hill Christian.
The Lady Marauders' lone senior, Riley Gofus, accepted the trophy for her team and held it tight to her chest throughout the celebration, interviews after the win, into the locker room -- and she might still be holding it as this story is read over the weekend.
"It was hard work, but it was a lot of fun. I was glad that I was able to do it with this group of girls, and I would not trade it for the world," Gofus said. "It has been an amazing experience."
Gofus likely appreciated Friday's championship more than any of her teammates.
She was the last active player on the roster to play for Bishop Guilfoyle when the Lady Marauders did not even make it out of the District 6 playoffs.
In 2022 following a season in which BG won a state title, Gofus was a freshman on a Lady Marauders squad that finished the season with four straight losses, including a 45-32 setback to Glendale in the District 6 playoffs to end the year.
"It was difficult, but I didn't really know the feeling of winning a lot at that point," Gofus said. "As a sophomore and junior we got better and better, and I realized winning was really fun. I have taken in every single moment, because I experienced that low. My dad has also encouraged me to soak up every moment and memory that I have been making."
Gofus grew along with BG.
In 2023, the Lady Marauders were the District 6 runner-up and won a state playoff game. They built on that success to avenge that District 6 loss a year later, win a championship and went all the way to Hershey to claim the state crown.
"I always put in the effort and practiced more and more," Gofus said. "My teammates pushed us harder and harder every single day at practice. When we played difficult teams, that helped me become a better player too."
Gofus wasn't a starter for Bishop Guilfoyle and didn't put up a lot of points when she played, but the minutes she was on the court throughout the season were impactful.
"What you don't see on the stat sheet about Riley is the leadership and the tone that she sets every day at practice," Bishop Guilfoyle coach Kristi Kaack said. "She will be missed immensely. People don't see what she brings. It's really important to our group. We're going to have to fill a big void when she's gone next year."
Gofus watched Sarah Geishauser, the only senior on last year's BG state championship team, and tried to fill that role on this year's team to the best of her ability.
"I tried to lead more by example," Gofus said. "Sarah led by example, and everyone wanted to be like her. That's what I tried to be. I tried to work hard every single day at practice."
Gofus was on the floor for 11 minutes and 37 seconds on Friday and missed her only shot. But she helped set up several baskets and was the first to pick up a fallen teammate or help cheer up a teammate that had committed a turnover.
"If you watched her practice the last two or three weeks, you saw a kid that didn't want her season to end," Kaack said. "The level she was raising for everyone around her was impressive. That's what makes Riley special. It's never about her. It's always about everyone else. She's spent the year picking kids up if they are down, and she's been that senior leader that every team needs."
Bishop Guilfoyle had four juniors on this year's roster and two of them, Stella Yeskey and Gia Adams, were starters at points during the season.
"I just want to fill the shoes of Riley and Sarah," Yeskey said. "I want to push our team to be the best they possibly can be, and hopefully we'll be back here next year."
Gofus is likely finished playing basketball. She said her plan is to go to Saint Francis and become a physician's assistant.
But she'll have her eye on Bishop Guilfoyle, and the underclassmen will have the traits she displayed to them on their mind.
"We want to be back here next year," Adams said. "We have to have that work ethic Sarah and Riley had and help instill that with the team we have next year to do that."