In fifth grade, Madison Langdon unknowingly made a decision that started her trajectory toward becoming the fifth Berks Catholic girl to score 1,000 points.
She had played both basketball and lacrosse up to that point, but once she joined a travel team with teammates Molly McFadden and Sydney Corado, basketball became her passion.
"From there, basketball was the No. 1 priority," Langdon said. "I fell in love with it. We would play in Philly and people would call Molly, Sydney, and I the 'Reading Three.'"
All the subsequent years, blood, sweat, and tears that followed have resulted in Langdon eclipsing 1,000 career points on a 3-pointer late in the first quarter of Berks Catholic's 40-32 victory over Mount St. Joseph's Academy Friday night at the Boardwalk Classic in Wildwood, N.J.
"It felt really good," Langdon said. "It was definitely a relief to see it go in. It felt really good to know my hard work paid off and that I got to do it with a bunch of my friends and family.
"Growing up I always knew that if I wanted to accomplish my goals and dreams I had to work hard and sacrifice for it. I'm lucky I've had such a supportive family."
Langdon, a 5-4 guard, focused entirely on basketball since she made that decision back in fifth grade and has rarely put down the composite leather orange ball since.
The sport has become a 12-month activity with the AAU season and training in the offseason, including with Villanova women's all-time leading 3-point shooter Adrianna Hahn's training program Hahn Hoops.
"I feel like a basketball is in my hand seven days a week," Langdon said. "I can't remember the last time I wasn't playing basketball. But I wouldn't have it any other way. Not many off days but that's okay. I enjoy it so I can't complain."
"You don't just get to be the type of player she is without playing 12 months a year," Berks Catholic head coach Bob Birmingham said. "She's been doing that for many years now."
Langdon has been a mainstay in Birmingham's lineup ever since she cracked it as a freshman when the Saints dealt with injuries. She started about half the games that season and has been in the starting lineup ever since.
"With a lot of individuals who are 1,000-point scorers, you see a consistent career that gradually gets better and better until they are seniors," Birmingham said. "That's what you've seen with Madison."
She scored 5.4 points per game as a freshman behind seniors Caroline Reedy, who scored 1,053 career points, and Aaliyah Dabney. As a sophomore, her average jumped to 11.3 behind senior Caraline Herb, who scored 1,140 career points.
Langdon became the top scorer last season as a junior, earning All-Berks honors with a 16.5 scoring average. She made 49 3s, a significant jump from the 17 she made as a freshman and 16 as a junior.
Through nine games this season, she's averaging 15.7 points and has already hit 19 3s.
"She's put a ton of time in especially between her sophomore and junior year in extending her range," Birmingham said. "She made that one of her top priorities to make her 3s strong but she can also go strong to the rim and she has a great midrange and pull-up game. She's been consistent and a great leader for us since she's been here."
One sign of that consistency is Langdon's free throw shooting, an area of her game that has been an immense positive throughout her career and epitomizes the hard work she puts in the gym.
Overall, she's shot approximately 77-percent from the foul line in her four years. To put that in perspective, only three current Berks girls are shooting above 77-percent on free throws this season. Langdon is one of them at 84-percent.
"I always had the goal in mind to score 1,000 points," Langdon said. "I realized I could do it when I was a freshman, but I knew I had to put a lot of work in, especially as a smaller guard. It's something I really worked for and was able to accomplish."
Suddenly a 1,000-point scoring senior herself, Langdon prides herself in setting a positive example for her younger teammates just as Herb and Reedy did for her.
She'll play her final game at Wolf Gymnasium later this season, but her name will be etched on a banner forever next to the likes of Berks Catholic greats Devon Merritt, Dejah Terrell, Herb, and Reedy, plus the eight Holy Name and seven Central Catholic 1K scorers who came before.
"I remember looking up to the seniors when I was a freshman," Langdon said. "I try to be a good leader and show you have to work hard and have a good mindset. They have so much potential. It's right there for them.
"Hard work pays off."
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