'A Gardner legend forever': Senior basketball player honored for her impact on the program

The Gardner News put out a poll to let readers have a say in the decision of our Girls Basketball Player of the Year. After over 56,000 votes from Gardner area high school sports fans and combining staff votes, the winner has been chosen.Players earned a spot on the poll through coach or staff nominations, highlighting their contributions throughout the season.

The winner was determined through both the results of the readers' poll and TGN staff votes. Based on the combined methods, here is the Girls Basketball Player of the Year top three.TGN Girls Basketball Player of the YearThe Gardner News Girls Basketball Player of the Year is Gardner's Tati Vazquez.



She scored the highest in staff voting and second on the poll with 13,754 total votes. Vazquez had a stellar senior season for the Wildcats, averaging 22.3 points per game.

She not only reached the 1,000-point milestone, but she also became Gardner's all-time female leading scorer. She was the Mid-Wach D MVP and led Gardner to its first league title in 20 years and an Elite Eight appearance. Vazquez was a major component of growing the Gardner girls basketball program and has served as a captain for three years.

Her talent and basketball IQ became a standard that was set for the team that led to developing a strong program that could compete alongside the best in the state."It was awesome to see the legacy she created for herself and the positive impact she had on the culture of the program," Gardner girls basketball head coach Francis Phillips said. The senior was not focused on her own accolades, but was truly a team player, wanting everyone to get their chance to shine even when she continued to be the leading scorer and playmaker.

Her attitude helped make basketball an inviting and exciting environment for girls, especially youth in the community. "She's a name that is going to be remembered in Central Mass. basketball for a long time and obviously a Gardner legend forever," Phillips said.

"She really made the most of her impact on Gardner."Honorable mentionsIn second place overall with the highest score in the poll was Oakmont's Molly Horgan with 29,658 total votes. Horgan was key to Oakmont's undefeated regular season as a big defensive force.

Although not always the leading scorer, her leadership and hard work was influential to the team. Amaiya LeBlanc of Oakmont was third overall. LeBlanc was a significant player all season long, showing great resilience and determination.

After being sidelined with an injury her junior season, she came back this year and led the team as one of the top scorers and a skilled defender.More: Murdock cheer is heading to Nationals after 'comeback season' sets tone for programFinal talliesPoints from Reader PollHorgan: 3Vazquez: 2Olivia Martin (Oakmont): 1Points from TGN StaffVazquez: 3More: Changing the culture: TGN Girls Indoor Track Athlete of the Year makes impact on schoolLeBlanc: 2Brielle Haddocks (Narragansett): 1TotalsVazquez: 5Horgan: 3LeBlanc: 2Martin: 1Haddocks: 1This article originally appeared on Gardner News: Gardner's Vazquez named TGN Girls Basketball Player of the Year.