Cassidy Deno, senior guard of the women’s basketball team, has reached a record career high of 2,005 points and is the second all-time scorer.

Deno exceeded her 2,000-point mark during the women’s basketball game against Roosevelt University on Jan. 28, where the team won 80-65.  She needed 14 points to have 2,000 points. Deno scored 19 points.

Deno said she could not have accomplished this without her teammates.

“I’m proud of myself, but these are not just my 2,000 points. This was an all-team effort. They were all on board and came together to help me out,” Deno said.

Deno said she mentally prepared herself for Roosevelt’s tough playing style and did not look at this game as unique.

“I wanted to go with the same mindset of every other game because we still had a game to win,” Deno said.

Deno was thrilled when she realized she’d reached 2,000 points during the game.

“It was a pretty awesome feeling when I found out I passed my 2,000 points. It was also cool because my family and almost 50 more people came to support me,” Deno said. “It was also senior day, so I couldn’t have asked for better timing.”

Tom Megyesi, women’s basketball head coach, said Deno appeared to be shocked during the moment. He said that he and the rest of the team were elated to be a part of Deno’s accomplishment.

“I was surprised and found it hard to believe when Cassidy did it, but she remained focused on taking care of the ball, despite the game being up-tempo and fast-paced,” Megyesi said. “We prepared with shooting drills, and it paid off for Cassidy well in this game and her overall career.”

Megyesi said he’s happy Deno achieved passing her 2,000-point mark and that she deserved it.

“Cassidy is very focused and a great kid. She does things other basketball players don’t,” Megyesi said. “She does little things, such as diving for the ball or following shots. They’re intangible things that don’t get her stats, but she uses this to her advantage.”

Deno said it was her hard work and her mindset that she should always strive to do better that helped her succeed. She also said she feels honored to be the second person in program history to achieve this feat. The first person is former PUC women’s basketball player Lee Ann Dee Young. She had 2,565 points during her career from 1984 to 1988.

“I never dreamed of this moment, and I have been fortunate and blessed to have played with great players my four years,” Deno said. “I also would have never made it this far without coach. It’s been a while that someone achieved something like this, and I’m glad I could put this achievement under his belt.”

Deno has high hopes for herself and the team for the rest of their season.

“I want to help my teammate Darien Thompson reach her 1,000 career points. She only needs eight more points, so I want to try and get her there the next game,” Deno said. “We want to continue to play well as a team, carry onto the conference championship and be undefeated.”

Deno is sad that her last season is ending, but that she couldn’t have asked for a better four years.

“I want to have no regrets. Time is running out, and I just want to leave everything out on the floor,” Deno said.

Deno also scored 51 points during the women’s basketball game against Olivet Nazarene on Feb. 1, which was the best single-game scoring performance in recorded women’s basketball history. She beat the previous score of 45 from former PUC guard, Alex Starr.