Mars bets on Black
ADAMS TWP — In early February, Ava Black fidgeted and stewed in her seat.
She was at home, watching her Mars girls basketball teammates taking on section rival Plum on the television in her living room.
It was excruciating for Black, a junior forward who was in COVID-19 quarantine at the time because of contact tracing.
“It was so much worse than I thought it would be,” Black said about being forced to watch the game from afar. “I knew I wanted to be there and I knew I should be there, but I couldn't. I wanted to be there with my team. It was heartbreaking.”Mars lost that game to Plum, 45-43.Black felt like she could have made a difference in that game, that the outcome would have been different.When the versatile 6-foot-1 Black was on the court for the Planets this season, she made a huge impact.Black averaged 16 points and nine rebounds per game. She also hit 26 3-pointers and shot 44 percent from behind the arc.Black was recently named first-team all-Big 56.Big 56 covers Class 5A and 6A in the WPIAL.She did most of it while battling a badly sprained ankle all season.“When she did it, we called timeout and took her out of the game,” said Mars coach Dana Petruska. “Our trainer is also one of our assistant coaches, so he was on the bench. He taped it up and I turned to Ava and asked, 'Are you OK?'” She said, 'Yeah. Yeah. I'm fine.'”Petruska said a few days later she caught a glimpse of that ankle and gasped.“It was more than just a minor sprain,” Petruska said. “She's one of those competitors who wasn't going to let an ankle injury stop her.”Defenses didn't have much luck stopping her, either.Black began to see some teams design gameplans to try to stop her.The ultimate compliment.“Sometimes it was hard; there would be defenses playing a box-and-one with someone specifically on me,” Black said. “A lot of times when I found that happening, I tried to get to the rim and my teammates did a good job relocating and getting shots from the outside, which would open things up for me inside again.“At first, when teams were doing that to me, it was a big shock,” Black added. “We've always had players in the past like Bella (Pelaia) and Tai (Johnson) that the defense would focus on. This year it was me. It was kind of flattering.”Black wasn't the only player hit with an injury this season for Mars.Senior Alek Johnson missed all but one game with her own ankle injury. Other players also missed some time because of ankle injuries and COVID-19 quarantine.“I had four kids in boots at one time or another,” Petruska said.Still, Mars went 10-10 and won a preliminary PIAA Class 5A playoff game.Black is one of a core of players returning next season.“I love all my teammates,” Black said. “Everyone is extremely close and this year made us even closer. I love how our team came together under difficult circumstances.”Black fretted about losing two seasons this year.Also a standout volleyball player, Black feared this fall that she wouldn't have that season.When the basketball season was postponed for a month in December, Black channeled that grief and turned it into a positive.She said that it made her a better player.“In a weird way, yes, it did,” Black said. “It reminded me how thankful I am to be doing this, reminded me how not everything is always going to be there for you.”Her father, Roger, gives her one bit of advise before each game: Play each game like it could be your last.Black understands that more than ever now.“I won't take anything for granted ever again,” she said.
