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By Michael Flanagan
Hometown Weekly Sports Editor
August. The time of year where baseball season is in full swing and football teams of all levels are starting their two-a-day practices and training camps in preparation for the upcoming season. Normally, this is not the time of year for local star basketball players to be breaking records and making headlines.
Don’t tell that to Walpole’s Kelly Fogarty and the 14 other participants in the A Shot For Life basketball shooting competition at the University Sports Complex in Hanover.
Fogarty, who is entering her senior season at Walpole High this fall, put on a show to remember by hitting 1,174 of 1,327 shots (88.5%), setting an all-time event record for both boys and girls.
While 2016 may be Fogarty’s most memorable performance at Shot For Life due to the record-shattering number of shots she made, this also marks the third year in a row that she has taken home the title as the best shooter in the state. Cardinal Spellman’s Hayley Wardwell placed second while Marissa Tomaino of Rivers placed third.
“I’ve played against Hayley and Marissa a lot. They work really hard and they are really tough to beat,” said Fogarty. “Having them there definitely made the competition more interesting and gave me little room for error.”
Fogarty, who recently committed to the University of Maine, said that while she is honored to be crowned as the best shooter in the state for a third consecutive year, there is more meaning to this event than just hitting shots.
“This is such a well-run program and this competition is really important to me for a lot of reasons,” said Fogarty. “Mike Slonina does such a great job of running it and he brought a great group of kids together. I’m happy that we were able to raise so much money for a great cause like fighting brain cancer, all while doing something we love.”
