The girls basketball team celebrated senior night on Thursday, Feb. 7 with a 72-40 home court win against Glenville.
This year’s team has been led by seniors Goldi Aschkenasy, Randall Brown, Lexi Jaffe, Ana Shlachter and Londyn Travis.
Senior captain Goldi Aschkenasy has been playing basketball for seven years. This is her second year as captain, and basketball has become an integral part of her life.
“The thing about basketball I enjoy the most is the distraction it provides me, and the family it has given me,” Aschkenasy said. “If I’m having a bad day, I will go shoot around to take my mind off things. It has provided me an outlet.”
“Over my seven years playing basketball, I have learned so many life lessons and skills that I will take with me for the rest of my life,” she added. “ However, I think the biggest skill I have developed is leadership.”
While she has grown as a player, she has also developed some regrets.
“I sacrificed a lot to try and make a dream come true and once I accomplished it, I realized that it wasn’t what I wanted,” she said. “So I just want to tell my younger self to stop worrying and enjoy it because it goes by fast.”
Senior Randall Brown has been playing basketball for eight years. Brown plays wing and block player. With those years come a lot of cherished memories, such as playing at the Cavs stadium.
“[It was] a very rewarding and mind-blowing experience, and we always get good food at a restaurant after we play,” she said.
Brown has advice for her younger self.
“I would tell myself to be more confident, the more mistakes you make the more you’ll learn,” she said.
Senior captain Lexi Jaffe has been playing basketball for ten years, and like Aschkenasy, has been a captain for two years now. In the past, Jaffe has played point guard, but this year she is playing shooting guard.
“I like playing shooting guard; I have more opportunities to shoot the ball,” Jaffe said.
The team has shown a lot of improvement this year.
“I’m enjoying my senior year, as we are… winning games, more than the last two years,” Jaffe said. “I enjoy the feeling of playing good teams, and we’ve been playing hard and aggressive.”
“I also enjoy the company of the team and just having fun playing the sport that I grew up with,” she added.
However, Jaffe’s final season of Beachwood basketball has been bittersweet.
“After this season, I’m going to be super sad because basketball has taught me patience and trust,” she said. “You need to trust your teammates, and if you don’t, the game won’t go as smoothly.”
Senior Ana Shlachter has been playing basketball for eight years and plays shooting guard.
“Something I take away is the importance of having team chemistry and the ability to communicate on and off the court,” she said. “[I enjoy] seeing hard work pay off, and the discipline and mental strength it gives you.”
Schlachter also has advice for younger players.
“Results don’t always come right away, it takes patience and consistency…aim as high as possible and don’t limit yourself,” she said.
Senior captain Londyn Travis has been playing basketball for two years. Travis is a post player so she plays five positions and has a unique perspective as a newcomer to the sport.
“I’m definitely going to walk away [from this season] knowing what it’s like to start something new. I started playing basketball junior year, so I started completely from scratch. It was interesting to try something completely new and different,” she said.
“My favorite basketball memory was our scrimmages during the summer at Mayfield High School, because the team got to be together for most of the day,” she said.
Like all athletes, Travis has some regrets when it comes to the end of her high school sports career.
“If I could go back I would tell my younger self to start playing basketball earlier because I [would have] had even more fun and gained skills along the way,” she said.
At publication, the girls are 12-9 (4-7 in CVC).
They are scheduled to play at Valley Forge tomorrow at 6:45 p.m.