Molly Donovan, left, and Kailee McDonald battle for possession during A Shot For Life all-star game held at Thayer Academy in Braintree. (Staff Photo Chris Christo/Boston Herald)
BRAINTREE – In a preliminary matchup, the Shot For Life All-Stars put on a show.
In the now-annual All-Star game leading up to the Shot For Life Challenge this Saturday, the Blue and White All-Stars split contests between the best high school shooters in the New England area.
Shot For Life founder Mike Slonina basked in the glory of the event and the organization he started has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for the Dr. Curry Research Lab on the campus of Massachusetts General Hospital in honor of his mother, who was diagnosed with a brain tumor back in 2010.
“We fund trials in tandem CAR-T cell therapy. I started this at 17 when my mom was diagnosed, and while she is OK, we do this for the families that don’t have access to the best therapies,” said Slonina. “This (game) gives the athletes an opportunity to go up and down in our logo and our relationships with the athletes are important. This is just a prelude to the big event.”
The event the All-Stars primarily participate in is the Shot For Life Challenge when the winner is named the Best Shooter in Massachusetts. If these games were any indication of what’s in store this Saturday at Starland in Hanover, the basketball aficionados are in for a treat.
In the girls’ game, the Blue Squad jumped out to an early 20-13 lead behind Wachusett’s Mary Gibbons, who was 3-of-3 from three-point land in the first eight minutes. While the Navy Academy commit was outstanding early on, it was all Kaelyn Carroll the rest of the way as the Tabor Academy sophomore drained 31 points along with 11 rebounds in the 92-69 rout of Team White.
Molly Donovan (St. George’s) tied things up for Team White at 34 but Carroll finished out the half with the next six points for the 40-34 halftime lead and the Blue All-Stars never looked back.
Megan Olbrys participated in this event when she starred at Norwood, but the sophomore Villanova star continues to give back to the organization and was the winning head coach for the Blue All-Stars. Olbrys was poetic on the meaning of the game and the weekend event.
“Being a part of this whole organization for almost four years now and being a part of this game last year, it obviously runs a little deeper for some people,” said Olbrys. “After going to college and being able to come back and give back year after year is just a great opportunity. With Mike and his family, the support we are giving with anything and everything is always a good way to share.”
In the nightcap, the game was much closer down the stretch as Austin Hunt, a Harvard commit for next season, finished off the game with a thunderous dunk to give the White All-Stars a 139-135 victory over Team Blue.
Hunt finished with 22 points with numerous highlight-reel dunks and acknowledged the true meaning of why he – and the entire group of outstanding athletes – were on the court.
“It’s fun to get together with a bunch of guys that are all high-level basketball players and do something great for your community and something to raise money for a good cause,” said Hunt. “All of these guys are going to play at the next level, and while it’s an All-Star game, everyone shares in the event, shares the ball well, and plays with a good pace and we try to have fun.”
Team Blue had Rivers tandem Ryan Altman (Rivers) with 26 points and 12 rebounds, while point guard Jay Jones took over in the second half and finished with 24 to make the Red Wings proud.
But the real eye-opener for the Blue All-Stars was Jake Blackburn with a game-high 32 points. The Worcester Academy 6-foot-4 wing finished 10-of-15 shooting from downtown in the loss, with many from NBA range.
Alex Berry (St. George’s) added 18 with five rebounds and four assists while 6-foot-6 teammate Ryder Frost of Beverly (Phillips Exeter ’25) finished with a team-high 26 points with six treys and two big free throws down the stretch to seal things up for Team White with 21.6 left in regulation.
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