Schuylkill League championship - check.

District 11 championship - check.

Winning in the state tournament - check.

Jim Thorpe’s season came to an end on Saturday afternoon after a loss to perennial state title contender Archbishop Wood in the PIAA Class 4A semifinals. It was a magical season for the Olympians, who put an exclamation point on a historic four-year run with its terrific 2021-22 season.

Thorpe’s four-year campaign consisted of four straight Schuylkill League and District 11 championship appearances, along with three state tournament berths. The Olympians took home two Schuylkill League titles (2019, 2022) and finally got over the hump this season with its first-ever District 11 title.

“I would consider this season the most successful of our four years together,” said senior guard and two-time Times News Player of the Year Skyler Searfoss. “We set our team goals at the beginning of the season and we accomplished all of them.

“This means so much to us seniors. We started playing together in elementary school in the Little Olympians program, and we dreamed back then that we would win league, district and possibly a state championship. My teammates are great players, but even better friends. I can’t wait to see what we all do at the next level.”

The Olympians’ four senior starters in Searfoss, Leila Hurley, Olivia Smelas and Leah Snisky have all put together impressive careers, and will all move on to play basketball at the collegiate Division 2 level. Searfoss will be heading to Holy Family, Hurley and Smelas will be teammates at Kutztown University and Snisky is moving on to Georgian Court University.

“All of our hard work has paid off tremendously,” said Hurley. “I am proud of all of the goals we met, records that we broke both as a team and as individuals, and the memories that we made together.

“Our friendship is way deeper than basketball. We grew up together, and we are inseparable both on and off the court. We have been playing basketball together in different leagues since second grade, and we have a chemistry and trust for each other that I don’t think you can teach. We work hard, never want to let each other down, and we are excited for everyone’s successes, and I can’t wait to see what the future brings for all of us.”

A total of 96 wins and a combined 5,146 points have come from this strong core four senior group. Searfoss is now the second all-time leading scorer in school history with 1,787 points. Hurley is one of the best all-time shooters in school history, scoring 1,468 points with 191 career three-pointers. Smelas is the first 1,000-point/1,000-rebound player in school history, finishing with 1,252 points, and Leah Snisky, who has improved to be an all-around threat on both the offensive and defensive ends of the floor, scored 636 points in her career.

“We have dreamed about titles and gold medals and banners since we first started playing together, and to actually accomplish those goals, we’re going down as a legacy team and the little girls we once were, I think they would be so proud of us now,” said Smelas.

“Each of us have become the players we are today because of how much we pushed each other during practices and in the off-season. The memories I’ve made with them I would not trade for the world. I can’t wait until we grow up and see each other again and just talk about all these great moments.”

The historic four-year run for this unforgettable senior group is over, but the memories and moments they have created for the Jim Thorpe community will never be forgotten. That was never made more evident than the jam-packed gymnasiums filled with Olympian faithful over the last month as Thorpe continued to advance through the district and state tournament.

One final moment after Saturday’s loss - when a majority of the fans that attended the game waited for the players outside of their bus and gave them a standing ovation as they exited the gym - was a well-deserved ending to a remarkable four-year run.

“Any time we had ups and downs, we came together and we overcame them,” said Snisky. “There is no one else I would rather step out onto the court with, and I am grateful to call them not only my teammates, but my best friends.

“It was great to finally get over the hump this season, and I think it’s a season that no one will ever forget, and I think we made our community proud.”