SAN ANTONIO — Rosanelly “Rosie” Pastrano doesn’t shy away from hitting big shots. She’s made plenty, averaging nearly 30 pts a game, but the senior’s most important points came at the free throw line.
A pair of free throws cemented her as the all-time leading scorer for girls basketball at Lee High School in San Antonio with 2,647 total points. It’s a milestone Rosie reached with her family by her side. Pastrano’s hoop dreams started when she first picked up a basketball at six years old. Her love for the game grew stronger in middle school as women’s basketball was increasing in popularity across the country.
“Knowing I was in that era where it was booming, I’m grateful for it just cause now I’m in that time where young girls are watching me or maybe even Hispanic girls are watching me,” Pastrano said.
The previous record holder for 38 years, Denise Forestier, is also cheering on Pastrano, complimenting Pastrano on her abilities and her trust.
“Knowing that she (Forestier) thought I was going to get it that game, it was a sense of relief that she trusted me,” Rosie said.
Pastrano needed 41 points to break that record, and that’s exactly what she scored. She finished her high school career with 2,679 points and was named the 27-6A District MVP.
“My parents always told me ‘you can do anything you put your mind to and stop selling yourself short already. Tell yourself that you can do it because you’ve been doing it,’” Pastrano said.
Pastrano is one of 45,000 girls across Texas playing high school basketball, which is up 1,400 participants from the year prior. Texas leads the country with the most girls playing high school basketball. Forestier, who played college hoops at The University of Texas at Austin and The University of Texas at San Antonio, is happier about the life lessons that come with the sport.
“Teamwork, perseverance, hard work, adversity — I think those are the things that impact these young ladies the most,” Forestier said. “To see them participate and see the game grow, that’s what I’m most proud of.”
Pastrano plans on taking those lessons with her to St. Mary’s University, where she’s committed to playing. She aspires to play the best she can, and is thankful for the scholarship the university offered her.
“It’s crazy we were in the H-E-B parking lot, it was me and my dad when she called me and said she offered me a full scholarship and I burst into tears,” Pastrano said of the moment she learned she had a scholarship while with her father, Isaac Pastrano.
It was emotional for the senior guard, and she wants to thank the familial support system around her for helping continue her passion for the game of basketball.
“That means my parents don’t have to pay out of pocket for anything. They’ve been doing that their whole lives since I (started playing) basketball,” Pastrano said.
Her time playing in high school and the memories she’s made there are important, and being her school’s all-time leading scorer is just the cherry on top.