SHARE

Baller Move: Fair Lawn Athlete's 1,000th Point Testament To Hard Work

FAIR LAWN, N.J. — One point made all the difference this week to Fair Lawn basketball player Nancy Ruf.

Ruf and her travel coaches after hitting her 1,000th point.

Ruf and her travel coaches after hitting her 1,000th point.

Photo Credit: Fair Lawn All Sports
Fair Lawn's Nancy Ruf, left, and teammate Keyara Martinez.

Fair Lawn's Nancy Ruf, left, and teammate Keyara Martinez.

Photo Credit: Nancy Ruf
Nancy Ruf of Fair Lawn.

Nancy Ruf of Fair Lawn.

Photo Credit: Nancy Ruf

That's all the junior Cutter needed to reach the 1,000th point of her high school career, ever since last week's loss to Mahwah (44-26).

Ruf's mega-moment came in the first quarter of Monday's winning game against Tenafly (64-34) — and it seems it took more patience than skill to get it.

"It's all I can think about," the athlete told Daily Voice before a game in late January. "But I don't want to force it."

Ruf averaged 350 points per season her freshman and sophomore years.

"I put in countless hours of work by myself and with all of the coaches that I have had," she said.

Basketball hasn't always come naturally to Ruf. She only started playing in fifth grade, but focused her effort on softball.

"I just wasn't good at it, so I kept working," the athlete said. "When I started getting better and seeing results, I fell in love with the sport."

The next step is looking to commit to a school, Ruf said, something else she's not trying to force.

"Knowing that I reached this milestone is a big deal to me," she said, "and it makes me feel like all the work I've put in over the years has paid off."

to follow Daily Voice Garfield-Lodi and receive free news updates.

SCROLL TO NEXT ARTICLE