So, what was Kara Christensen doing gathering her teammates together for the official photograph commemorating her 1,000th basketball point scored for Hot Springs? And posing with them for said photo after Saturday’s history-making game with Noxon?

It’s called sharing the spotlight, and Kara is obviously a hall of fame candidate in that category.

“I wanted to show them how much I appreciate them for helping me achieve this,” Christensen said. "They deserve credit for being such great teammates, for being super supportive, I really appreciate them and they deserve to be recognized.”

Although Kara appreciates her young teammates, her and Callie Cano are the only seniors on the Hot Springs squad, they have to appreciate Christensen right back as well, as she moved into the ranks of the all-time Hot Springs greats by passing the 1,000 point mark in the game with Noxon in Hot Springs Saturday, joining Jen Chisholm (1989), Maria Wigton (1992) and Makenzie Wood (2010) as the only four current members of the Lady Savage Heat 1,000 point club.

Not to mention the fact that besides becoming an All-State C caliber player, she has also become a leader, on and off the floor for the young Hot Springs squad, playing multiple positions as needed and encouraging her teammates constantly along the way.

Playing for Hot Springs a few years behind her legendary sister Katelyn Christensen, who is now a college athlete competing in the heptathlon at Carroll College, Kara knows that Katelyn would have also scored at least 1,000 points as well as strong athletic genes obviously run in the family, if Katelyn had not suffered an untimely knee injury her junior year.

Kara suffered an unfortunate injury of her own, breaking an ankle during her junior year track season, an injury she seems to have fully recovered from.

Kara says she plans on following Katelyn in pursuing a college career in sports although she remains undecided as to what sport and what specialties, and at which school, she will eventually decide to participate.

As sweet as crossing the 1,000 point mark was last week, Kara said that point No. 982, the one that sent the Heat past the rival Trotters in Plains 45-44 at the buzzer last Tuesday, may have been even sweeter still.

“Point number 982 was pretty sweet for sure,” she said. “Coach (Brady Ovitt) is super smart, he set up the play he wanted, I found myself open, received the perfect pass and shot it.”

And the rest, as they say, is history, for Kara and Heat hoop fans everywhere. Long live Hot Springs basketball history, a history you are now a very real, tangible part of.

Thanks for that Kara, and there’s no reason to share the spotlight with anyone else this time.