Villa Maria Academy’s Marah McHugh is Main Line Girls Athlete of the Week (Jan. 2-8)
Marah McHugh, a 5-foot-11 senior forward, has helped the Hurricanes off to a 9-0 start (as of Jan. 2), averaging 13.0 ppg, 6.6 rpg, 1.5 apg, 2.1 spg and 1.0 bpg. Last winter, she was the Hurricanes’ leading scorer during the team’s drive to the PIAA District 1 5A title, after being sidelined for seven weeks earlier in the season with two torn ligaments and a fractured ankle. McHugh received second team All-Main Line girls’ basketball honors as a junior. Villa Maria basketball head coach Kathy McCartney said, “Marah is a very athletic player who can do a lot of things on the court. She gives us versatility because she can play on the perimeter or in the paint. I believe we haven’t seen her best basketball yet. She has improved immensely over the past four years and has become a leader on our team.” McHugh will continue her basketball career next winter at Gettysburg College.
Q: What was your favorite memory of last season?
A: Winning the district title – the celebration of all of the girls afterwards and how happy everyone was.
Q: You’re averaging more than two steals a game as a forward. What in your opinion is the biggest key to playing good defense and making steals?
A: Defense is a team effort, if everyone is contributing then good things happen.
Q: What part of your game have you worked on the most recently?
A: I have really been concentrating on team defense and helping out the weak side.
Q: Who is your favorite basketball player, and why?
A: Paige Bueckers is definitely my favorite basketball player. I love the way she plays and she is definitely a great team player. She is resilient to come back from her injury and to perform at such a high level.
Q: Tell us a little about your start in basketball. Who have been your top basketball mentors, and what was the most important thing you learned from each of them?
A: My start in competitive basketball began in 5th grade, when I joined my first AAU team. I played for an AAU team, Lighting, and fell in love with the sport. My most important basketball mentors have definitely been Will Evans, my AAU basketball coach, Keith Brazzo, the Villa Maria basketball coaches, and my dad. These people have pushed me for many years to work hard to achieve what I want. For Villa Maria basketball, Coach McCartney, Coach Blatt, Coach Hoban, and Coach Lubanski have always pushed me to be better and have always been people I can count on and look up to. They all believe I have the potential to do great things and they want to see me be the best basketball player I can be. With their support and determination to make me a better player, I feel that everything I have learned from them is the reason why I am the player I am today.
Fun facts – Marah McHugh
Favorite TV show: Gilmore Girls.
Favorite athlete: Azzi Fudd.
Favorite pre-game pump-up song: Let It Shine, by Coco Jones.
Favorite team: Sixers.
Favorite course at Villa Maria: Chemistry.
Favorite place to visit: Myrtle Beach, S.C.
Favorite pre-game meal: Olives and Nutrigrain bar.
Person I most admire, and why: “My parents, because they are my role models.”
Family members: parents Craig and Marie, sisters Faith and Grace.
(To be selected as Main Line Girls Athlete of the Week, a student-athlete must first be nominated by her coach.)
