Athlete of the Week: Jenn Gale

There are several reasons for the success of the Hoosac Valley girls' basketball team this year but perhaps the most obvious one has to deal with the improved play of shooting guard Jenn Gale.

Gale has become more and more consistent in her junior year, increasing her scoring average and her accuracy from behind the 3-point line. She has truly become a weapon with her long-range shooting, averaging just under two 3-pointers a game on her way to scoring 9.9 points per contest. Right now, she's the leading 3-point shooter in all of Berkshire County with 26 treys on the year. She's slightly ahead of fellow sharp shooters Lucy Barrett, who has 24 triples for Mount Greylock, and Pittsfield's Courtney McLaughlin and Wahconah's Gabby Lavinio, who both check in with 20 on the year.

"Jenn is a deadly 3-point shooter and is really shooting the ball well right now," Hurricanes coach Ron Wojcik said. "She has really come into her own offensively this season, and we look to her as one of our key scorers heading down the stretch and into the tournament."

Gale has really stepped up her play in the last four games, raising her scoring average nearly five points to 14.5 per game. She started things off with five threes and a season-high 19 points in a victory over Taconic on January 17. She remained hot against Lenox two days later, draining four treys on her way to scoring a team-high 14 points in a win over the Millionaires at the Coaches versus Cancer Showcase.  Gale kept it going against Monument Mountain last week, collecting 11 points to go along with five rebounds and three assists as Hoosac secured its 10th win of the season and a berth in the Division 2 Western Mass. tournament.

Although her team suffered a tough loss to Wahconah on Thursday, Gale still led the way for the Hurricanes with a 14-point outing. Wojcik also noted that scoring isn't her only skill on the basketball court. She's currently second on the team in steals (38) and third on the squad in rebounding (4.2 rpg).