KARNS CITY — Emily Hegedus sat in the locker room at Clarion University with her father and Karns City girls assistant basketball coach Mike Hegedus long after the final buzzer blared out the end to her senior season and career in purple and gold.

She didn't want to take her uniform off.

“My dad put his arm around me and told me how proud he was of me and how this was just one chapter and the next one would be even better,” Emily Hegedus said. “I knew I was going to be upset, I just didn't realize I would be that upset.”

Hegedus bled purple throughout her four-year career in which she set a school record with 1,735 points.

She played in all 104 games in her career and the Gremlins were 78-26 with three District 9 titles with her on the floor.

This year may have been her best.

As the undisputed leader and scoring threat, Hegedus averaged 25.7 points per game and also added 12.2 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 3.4 steals per contest.

She also shot 80 percent from the free throw line.

For her efforts, Hegedus was named the 2017-18 Butler Eagle Girls Player of the Year.

A-C Valley's Ellie Thompson and the Mars duo of Tai Johnson and Lauren Wasylson were also considered.

“I'm kind of shocked,” Hegedus said. “It's pretty awesome considering how many good players there were this year.”

Even a month removed from her final game, Hegedus is still having a difficult time dealing with the end of her career.

“I've been missing it a lot,” she said. “The night we lost, it was a hard night for me. Even though I knew it was going to come to an end eventually, it hit me hard and it was tough.”

Making things more difficult on Hegedus is the fact she has still not made a decision on where that next chapter of her academic and basketball career will take place.

There are about a half-dozen schools in the mix and Hegedus admitted she is having a hard time choosing from them.

Clarion University — ironically the place where her high school career ended — is on that list along with Westminster College, Pitt-Greensburg, Wheeling Jesuit and a few unnamed others.

“I don't want to make the wrong (decision),” Hegedus said. “They are all such good schools with great people there.”

Hegedus has a list of those schools with a pro and con column.

She said even that hasn't made the choice easier.

As she reflects on her high school career, a few thing stand out, namely getting to play with her sister, Annie, and for her father, Mike.

And the fans.

“We have amazing fans and my family was amazing, cheering me on every single game,” Hegedus said. “I was lucky, too, because I never had a serious injury my entire career.”

Hegedus said she sometimes finds the things she did in her career surreal.

“I have to pinch myself sometimes,” she said. “I think it's a dream or something. There's so many great players who have played here that sometimes I wonder who I'm even on that list with them.”

Hegedus said she had a message for the players who still have high school games left to play.

“Just live in the moment,” Hegedus said. “Yesterday, I was a little freshman and I was scared to even touch the ball. Now I'm done. Live in the moment and don't blink. Don't slack off. You never know when it's going to be over.”