The year was 1984. The Detroit Tigers won Major League Baseball’s World Series, but since then, they have not even come close to winning another.

That same year, Marian Catholic’s girls’ basketball team had three players on its roster who ended the season with more than 1,000 career points.

No Times News area school had duplicated that remarkable accomplishment until Saturday afternoon, when Jim Thorpe’s Olivia Smelas floated a one-handed shot from the middle of the key that fell into the rim and through the net for her 1,001st point.

Smelas joins teammates Skyler Searfoss and Leila Hurley to become the first trio in the Times News circulation area to all be playing together while they were over the 1,000-point mark since Marian did it 38 years ago.

That Fillies team was led by junior Diane Decker - who finished her career with 2,317 points - and seniors Maura Hydro (1,824 career points), and Grace Perilli (1,063 career points).

Searfoss was the first of the Lady O’s trio to mark the achievement when she banked a layup against Blue Mountain in January of last season. Last year, Hurley drained a three-pointer against Panther Valley a month later that put her over the top, and Smelas then completed the historical run on Saturday against Minersville.

When asked about being the first team in nearly four decades to have three 1,000-point scorers, Searfoss replied, “Wow, we’ve been playing together for so long now and working hard for our team and our school, so this is just amazing.’’

After the game against Minersville, Searfoss’ career mark was 1,442 points, with plenty of basketball yet to play.

Hurley said, “We’ve been playing together since we were six years old with the Little Olympians. I think working together has a lot to do with three of us scoring this many points.”

Her point total stood at 1,219 following Saturday’s win over the Battlin’ Miners.

Smelas remarked that for the three of them to score over 1,000 was not realistic when they were all freshmen, and could not have happened without the unselfish play from each other.

Senior Leah Snisky - who has been a starter for the past two years with the trio and is a key part of this year’s success - was happy to be a major part of this JT team that has racked up 75 victories since they first stepped on the court as freshmen.

“That’s an awesome accomplishment,” she said in praise of her teammates. “We’re very team-oriented, so that’s what makes it even more special.”

Mackenzie Yuhas, the other starter on this year’s team, echoed Snisky’s comments and Haley Smelas, Olivia’s younger sister who plays a lot of minutes for Thorpe off the bench, expressed pride in her sister’s individual mark, adding that growing up together, the “level of competitiveness” between them helped her older sister improve her game along the way.

Jim Thorpe coach Nadia Gauronsky commented that she feels privileged to have coached Searfoss, Hurley, and Smelas for the past two seasons, and also to be their mentor at the moment school history was made.

“They’re just a great bunch of girls to coach,” said Gauronsky, who as a player scored 1,554 career points herself for a Panther Valley district championship team. “Their success is even more remarkable because we play team basketball. There is no one star.”

During the 1983-84 season, Marian’s tremendous offensive firepower produced a PIAA Class A State Championship - a goal that the Class 3A Olympians have also set their sights upon.

To a girl, when asked what would make this a season to remember, their reply was, “Win the Schuylkill League, win the district championship, and make a long run in the states.’

With three 1,000-point scorers who play the game unselfishly, these goals are achievable and for seniors, Searfoss, Hurley, Smelas and Snisky, their team motto, “The Last Dance” is something they hope to be doing in their final games of their careers.

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OFF TO A GOOD START

… Both the Jim Thorpe and Palmerton girls’ basketball teams are off to a good start this season. The Bombers are perfect after 10 games and are atop the Colonial League standings with a 9-0 record, while the Olympians are unbeaten in seven games and stand 3-0 in the Schuylkill League. After dropping its first two games - which happened to be to Jim Thorpe and Palmerton - Lehighton has enjoyed a four-game win streak. Northwestern is currently in the midst of a three-game win streak.Pleasant Valley lost two of three to start the season, before earning victories in its next four games.

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RAISE THAT TROPHY

… Over the holiday break, the Jim Thorpe girls’ basketball team added another championship trophy to its collection. On Thursday, Dec. 30, the Olympians capped the Pocono Mountain West Tournament with a 56-37 victory over the host Panthers. The Olympians opened the tournament with a 60-43 win over Eastern Pennsylvania Conference power Northampton.

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LOCAL BRAGGING RIGHTS

… In a tournament that featured four teams from the Times News coverage area and was played Dec. 27-28, the Palmerton boys’ basketball team grabbed bragging rights, as well as the rights to the Slatington Rotary Boys Christmas Tournament Championship. After beating Lehighton in the semifinals, the Blue Bombers posted a 43-34 win over Jim Thorpe in the final. Meanwhile, Northern Lehigh defeated Lehighton in the consolation game with a 51-48 win.

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EARLY-SEASON SUCCESS

… Several area wrestling teams took part in tournaments over the holiday break, with several local Times News grapplers earning accolades. Jim Thorpe’s own Gabe Heaney won the 152-pound weight class in JT’s own holiday tournament. Palmerton’s Dennis Lombardi (152 pounds) and Tamaqua’s Gabe Erbe (113 pounds) both earned silver medals in their own respective tournaments, while Lehighton’s Jacob Hall (106) and Aiden Gruber (120) both grabbed third-place finishes. The following individuals all earned fourth-place finishes in their respective tournaments: Jared Newhall (Jim Thorpe, 172 pounds), Caleb McDermott (Jim Thorpe, 189 pounds), Noah Stein (Lehighton, 172 pounds) and Deven Armbruster (Lehighton, 189 pounds).

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SECOND CHANCE

… On Tuesday, Dec. 21, Aaliyah Fisher was in the right place at the right time. With 3.1 seconds left on the clock, Fisher put back a missed opportunity for what turned out to be the game-winning two-pointer. It was what the Lehighton girls’ basketball team needed to secure a 46-45 Schuylkill League win over Pine Grove.

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BOMBER PRIDE

… Over the last few weeks, the Palmerton girls’ basketball team watched two of its players - seniors Brianna Moore and Raegan Nemeth - reach some memorable milestones in their high school careers. On Jan. 4, with a 10-foot jumper in the third quarter against Catasauqua, Moore posted her 1,000th career point in a 59-27 win that night. Before that, Nemeth also put herself in the Bombers’ record books on Dec. 20 when she dialed long distance from beyond the arc for her 100th-career three-pointer in a 66-41 Colonial League win over Moravian Academy.

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HOT HAND

… Reaching 30-plus points isn’t a common occurrence in a high school basketball game. But that’s not the case for Palmerton’s Brianna Moore. Moore had the hot hand for the Bombers that night, and they kept feeding her the ball on the way to an impressive 32-point performance in a 66-41 victory over Moravian Academy.

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NO PRESSURE

… On Jan. 3, Marian’s Brendan Lonergan had to step to the foul line in a pressure situation in the final seconds of the game. Lonergan went on to sink both free-throw attempts to lift the Colts to a 40-39 Schuylkill League win over Mahanoy Area. Lonergran, who scored nine points, put the Colts ahead with 17.4 to play in the fourth quarter.