With a layup midway through the fourth quarter of Wednesday night's game, North Carroll senior Caitlin Bach became Carroll County's all-time leading scorer in girls basketball.
Bach, a 5-foot-11 forward, scored 29 points in a 60-16 win over visiting Brunswick to boost her career points total to 1,516, eclipsing the record of 1,514 set by Melanee Wagener of South Carroll in 1988.
After the record-setting basket, Bach was mobbed by her cheering teammates and shed a tear or two of relief.
"I'm glad to ... move on and not have the team focused on that," said Bach, who came into the game needing 28 points to break the record and said earlier that she was feeling the pressure.
"It feels good. It was nice to have everyone here to be with me. A lot of people told me they weren't going to come and wanted to trick me and put some more pressure on me. It is a relief and I'll be happy tonight."
Her parents, three grandparents and sisters Melissa and Sarah were on hand to witness the milestone. After the game, she was awarded the game ball and a small crystal trophy.
North Carroll coach John Brown said Bach is the most aggressive player he has coached in eight years with the Panthers (11-2). Her ability to score has been evident since she was a freshman, but Wednesday night she was a little nervous.
"She definitely sped up to try to get it done. It's kind of like a kid on Christmas Day. You just can't wait for it to come. Now that it's over, we can get back to work. I think we're all relieved," said Brown, who apologized for the lopsided score but said he wanted Bach to get the record at home.
Bach is no stranger to the spotlight. She is North Carroll's all-time leading scorer - male or female - and last season, she became the first Panther to score more than 1,000 points. She is also nearing her 1,000th rebound, needing 16 to get there after grabbing 15 on Wednesday night.
In her four years, she has started all 76 games and averages 19.8 points and 12.9 rebounds for her career.
The Baltimore-area girls basketball scoring record, also set in 1988, is a little out of Bach's reach. Curley Jones, a 1988 graduate of Arlington Baptist, scored 2,586 points.