Elisabeth Stapeldfeld: Next 1000-Point Scorer

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Elisabeth Stapelfeld’ 22 celebrates her 1,000 point accomplishment. This is a goal she has been working towards since 4 years ago, when she made the girls varsity basketball team. “I believed in myself but I never expected it to happen. I knew it wasn’t going to be handed to me, I had to work for it,” said E. Stapelfeld.

Jill Bradbrook, Staff Writer

Elisabeth Stapelfeld ’22 scored her 1,000 point on January 24, 2022 against Sanborn Regional High School. The 1,000 point mark is an extremely rare experience for high school basketball players, with only 11 players reaching it in 57 years. The objective is for a player to score 1,000 points, throughout the four years. Sounds easy right? It’s not. This achievement takes great skill, dedication, and motivation. The last player to reach this was in 2017, by Cassandra Stapelfeld ’17.

Stapelfeld stepped onto the court, 16 points away from 1,000, and attained them by the third quarter. The team defeated Sanborn with an overall score of 60-32. The game was put on hold at the time of the achievement. She was given a basketball award, and the audience applauded her tremendously. Her friends and family attended the game.

Joining varsity freshman year, E. Stapelfeld averages at 23.8 points a game. She is number one in the division II girls basketball for scoring leaders in New Hampshire. With her successful basketball career at HB, E. Stapelfeld was noticed by scouts. “I am playing at Saint Joseph’s College in Maine for basketball, where I will be majoring in accounting,” said E. Stapelfeld . 

Due to COVID-19, E. Stapelfeld lost half of her junior year basketball season. This separates her from the other players listed on the 1,000 point banner because she had to work harder and smarter for it.

Stapelfeld has put much time into this milestone by practicing at Hampshire Hills six out of seven days a week. She goes there with family and by herself to better her skills and get prepared for games. E. Stapelfeld grew up in an entirely basketball-playing household with four siblings. Her first youth practice was in first grade for instructional and then third grade for the school’s travel team. Throughout her youth, she won multiple championships.

“My sister [Cassandra] is my role model because she has always worked so hard at basketball and she also got 1,000 points, which I have always looked up to her for getting,” said E. Stapelfeld. C. Stapelfeld is a senior on Saint Joseph’s girls basketball team where E. Stapelfeld is also committed to play this fall. “I’m so proud and excited for her. We all grew up watching each other play and we have always been each other’s biggest fans. It’s always so special coming home and seeing her play,” said C. Stapelfeld. 

Stapelfeld has had many teammates across her high school basketball career. In the off seasons E. Stapelfeld, along with Kenna Dunn ‘23, plays for Crusaders AAU. “Elisabeth is our captain because she’s been a huge part of the team since her freshman year. She is the glue for our team and it wouldn’t be right if she didn’t have a leadership role,” said Dunn. Dunn notices E. Stapelfeld’s ability to be a teammate and leader, and her commitment to the teams.