Staff file photo / Preston Byers. Boardman’s Mackenzie Riccitelli brings the ball up the floor during the Spartans’ game against Cardinal Mooney on Jan. 24

BOARDMAN — As a child, Mackenzie Riccitelli would tag along with her father when he would leave for basketball practice. The young Riccitelli watched closely as her father coached and directed players, which ultimately piqued her interest in the sport.

“Just coming into practices and seeing all those older girls really made me want to play,” Riccitelli said. “Being in the stands, watching all those games was super exciting, and it just made me want to get in all the action.”

Inspired by her father, Donny, and the players he coached, Riccitelli began playing basketball in second grade. And now as a senior at Boardman nearing the end of her high school career, she has solidified a legacy in Boardman’s girls program.

Riccitelli, who has led the Spartans to a 17-5 record in her final season, surpassed 1,000 career points in a double-overtime victory against Canfield on Jan. 20. Her milestone achievement is not the only reason her teammates and coach remember the game so fondly, though.

Boardman, trailing by three with less than 10 seconds remaining in overtime, needed a big shot. But Riccitelli’s game-tying three-pointer was even bigger than Spartans head coach Jeff Hammerton was even expecting.

“She pulled from the Southern Park Mall to tie that game. And there was never a doubt with that shot,” Hammerton said. “You want to win that game, obviously, when you get your 1000th point, so she willed us to win that game. It was a huge team win, and everyone rallied around her that day to get that victory, but that shot is one of those things you’ll never forget as a coach.”

Riccitelli’s “NBA three-pointer,” as Hammerton put it, sent the game to a second overtime, where the Spartans prevailed 63-60. The late-game heroics, just like all of the other successes she has had throughout her career, have not eroded her humility, according to her teammates and coach.

“She deserves a lot of credit, but she deflects that to her teammates because she knows without them, you can’t reach all this stuff,” Hammerton said. “She’ll tell you on that shot against Canfield… if it wasn’t for Ava Freeborough’s pass, or if it wasn’t for Sarah Bero’s screen, that shot never happens.”

Mary-Catherine “M.C.” Werth, one of Boardman’s three seniors, has known Riccitelli since they were in kindergarten and has played basketball with her since fourth grade. She said ‘Kenzie’ is still the same person she met when they were children.

“She has not changed since fourth grade,” Werth said. “She has been such a leader since fourth grade. You put the ball in her hands, and she just takes charge. And she’s still that way, especially in high school. But she’s such a goofball and she’s just so humble and has been. She’s so incredibly talented, but she doesn’t let it get to her head, and she’s just so kind.”

Fellow senior Samantha Duble echoed Werth, saying Riccitelli’s personality makes her unique.

“She’s always laughing and giggling, and whenever she walks into a room, she puts a smile on everybody’s face,” Duble said.

Hammerton said Riccitelli is also one of the most popular people among the kids she helps coach in Boardman’s youth program.

“To see how she interacts with those young kids and how those young kids love her… Kenzie’s one of those girls that all those little girls love, look up to and want to be someday,” Hammerton said.

Riccitelli’s kindness and humility do not diminish her competitiveness and work ethic, though. Hammerton praised his senior leader for being a model student-athlete, having earned a 4.0 GPA while lettering in basketball, cross country and track and field.

Riccitelli will be continuing her education and basketball career at the College of Wooster, which Hammerton said is a result of Riccitelli’s determination.

“She wanted to play at the next level. That was a goal of hers,” Hammerton said. “But when some people look at Kenzie, they look at her and they see the size, and they’re like, ‘Does she weigh 80 pounds wet? Is she even 5-foot-7?’ The eyeball test sometimes isn’t there, but she knew that she wanted to play college basketball, and she worked her tail off to do it.”

Riccitelli leads the Spartans in points, assists and steals this season, which included an All-American Conference title, a goal she and the team had set out for themselves in the preseason.

Over the past two seasons, with Hammerton at the helm, Boardman has compiled a 32-14 record, a massive improvement after having failed to reach 10 wins in more than five years.

Hammerton credited his three seniors for spearheading the program’s turnaround, but he said Riccitelli was “at the forefront” of “rebuilding the culture” of a program that had been sliding downward for several years.

Riccitelli hopes she and her team will be remembered for helping lift the Spartans’ girls program up when it needed it most.

“I just want to have left with Boardman basketball back,” Riccitelli said. “We had a rough patch, but these girls here now — our ability to just come into practice every day, work hard and start winning games. … We’re a team that never gave up, never quit.”

pbyers@tribtoday.com