All these gold medals not lost on Mifflin’s Elisa Fiore

By Jason Guarente — MikeDragoSports.com senior correspondent

Elisa Fiore doesn’t know what happened to the other gold medals. They’re not lost. They’re tucked away somewhere in her house.

Gov. Mifflin’s senior never worried much about them. They’re just symbols handed out at the end. She plays for the moments. Running onto the court and jumping into Taylor Koenig’s arms. Climbing the steps and cutting down the net.

Years from now, when this latest championship fades into a story people like to share, it’s those fleeting moments that will occasionally race across Fiore’s mind.

“This is all that I wanted,” she said. “To win the county championship. It feels perfect.”

Mifflin defeated Wilson 47-34 in the Berks girls basketball final at Santander Arena Friday night. It was the Mustangs’ third title in four years. Only one player connects all three.

There are four stars on this Mifflin team. Koenig is the top shooter. Anyah Ortiz is the most dynamic scorer. Shakyla Mayo has the best all-around skill. Fiore is the keystone that holds the pieces in place. She allows the others to be the best versions of themselves.

A question hovered over Mifflin before the first tip-off 10 weeks ago. Who could replace All-Berks selection Stella Mollica at point guard? That player became Fiore, even though she hadn’t played the position since fifth grade.

Fiore drove the lane and kicked out passes for those Koenig 3-pointers. She rebounded and fired passes that sent Ortiz and Mayo on fast breaks. She took care of the ball, including 30 minutes in the championship game without once giving it away.

“Elisa stepped up,” Mifflin coach Mike Clark said. “I thought she handled the pressure. She didn’t turn it over. She helped us spread the floor. It seems like she plays great every championship game.”

Fiore, standing at 5-8, was the center in Mifflin’s 2-3 zone that held Wilson to 18 points through three quarters. She tussled with the 6-2 Isis Dojan and won some of those battles. There was a shiner under her right eye. The result of a stray elbow late in the game.

Point guards don’t usually cover the paint on defense. Those jobs aren’t supposed to overlap.

“Elisa will do anything we need to win,” Mayo said. “She doesn’t complain about it. If she needs to take up the ball, she’ll take up the ball. If she needs to shoot, she’ll shoot it. Elisa is an all-around player.”

Wilson made a comeback in the fourth quarter and cut a 15-point deficit to six with 2:49 remaining. Mifflin was falling apart at the foul line, missing 8-of-9 attempts during one stretch. The Mustangs were clearly on edge.

That’s when Wilson made a fatal mistake. The Bulldogs fouled Fiore on purpose near midcourt. She’s the one who wasn’t rattled. The 77% free throw shooter cashed in both attempts. The lead was stretched back to eight and calm was restored.

When everything was going wrong, Fiore kept it together. She brought the poise Mifflin sorely needed.

“The personalities on our team are big,” she said. “As a person, not even as a player, I’m more laid back. We wouldn’t win without everyone else’s energy. We balance each other out. It works.”

Fiore links Mifflin’s championship teams from two years ago and today. She was an integral part of the “Starting 6” that completed a back-to-back run. Mollica, Sydney Payne, Gloria Serrano, Jocelyn Grosch and older sister Gina were the heart of that group. Those were the girls Fiore grew up playing alongside. Her lifetime teammates. This season brought a separate collection of players.

There’s an element of luck that comes with winning. Part of it is simply being in the right place at the right time. When a player helps completely different teams claim championships, it’s more than luck.

Fiore was the leading scorer when Mifflin defeated Reading High in the final in 2020. She only took seven shots combined in the last two games of this tournament. She made both of her 3-pointers and both of her free throws for eight points against Wilson.

The senior is versatile and unselfish. Those traits are difficult to measure and easy to take for granted. When Clark tells his point guard to be the center of the zone, only two words follow. “Yes, Coach.”

“I ask all the girls to do what it takes to win,” Clark said. “All of them don’t mind doing it. They all buy into it.”

Mayo hit the buzzer-beater that rescued Mifflin against Berks Catholic in the semifinals. Fiore created that chance. She secured the rebound with Caroline Reedy and Aaliyah Dabney lurking. She sent the quick outlet pass that gave Mayo time.

Making the play that someone else turns into the magical ending isn’t glamorous. It’s necessary. There’s no trophy to jam into Mifflin’s crowded case without both halves of that play.

Fiore was the last person handed the scissors and the opportunity to climb the ladder. She cut off the remaining pieces of the net and waved it to the Mustangs below. Six times she walked onto the Santander Arena floor and six times she walked off with the winning team.

The senior joked she might search for those other gold medals and wear all three at once. Stage a Michael Phelps type of photoshoot. Otherwise, they can stay hidden. She doesn’t need a keepsake to remind her of what her time at Mifflin has brought.

“It’s the memories that I’m going to carry with me,” Fiore said. “My teammates are forever. My memories are forever. I can say I was a three-time county champion forever.”

Over the past few seasons, no Berks player had a greater influence on the bottom line. Winning. That’s the only prize that ever mattered to Fiore.