VIDEO: Wildwood senior on verge of making history on multiple fronts

Posted: January 13th 2025

Wildwood senior Macie McCracken has moved within striking distance of 2,000 career points and 300 career three-pointers

By BRIAN CUNNIFF

CapeAtlanticLive.com

Macie McCracken is coming up on a couple of major individual accomplishments, both of which she could reach in her next game. But that next game for McCraken and the Wildwood High School girls basketball team comes against a very formidable opponent in Clayton on the road on Wednesday.

The 5-8 senior guard will enter the contest 26 points shy of 2,000 for her career. She would become just the 33rd girls basketball player in South Jersey history, only the fourth in Cape May County history and the second from within her own family to reach that lofty number.

McCracken admits that the approaching milestone has weighed on her mind.

“I’m definitely stressed about it,” she said. “But it’s fine.”

She can shift her focus away from the individual accomplishment a bit, though, because Wednesday’s contest with the Clippers is a vital one. Clayton, featuring one of South Jersey’s top players in Rainelle Blocker (20.7 ppg, 13.9 rpg), enters at 7-1.

“I’m going to go out and play like I normally do and not expect to get (the milestone),” McCracken said. “It’s an important game because they’re a good team in our conference. They have a really good girl who’s one of the best players in our conference, so I’m looking forward to playing against her.”

McCracken would join her older sister, Maddie, a 2019 Wildwood graduate (2,001 points); 2015 Lower Cape May graduate Lauren Holden (2,476 points); and 2002 Wildwood graduate and South Jersey all-time scoring leader Monica Johnson (3,173 points) as the only players from Cape May County to hit the 2,000-point barrier.

“I’m really excited because that list is a bunch of people that were some of the best players to have ever played around here,” McCracken said. “I would consider it an honor to be considered in the same group as they are.”

In addition to the scoring mark, McCracken is on the verge of another milestone. Already the far and away leader in Cape May County history in three-point field goals, McCracken is just four three-pointers away from 300 for her career.

“Threes are a big reason why I have so many points so I’m excited about that, too,” she said.

The youngest of three talented sisters – her oldest sister, Mackenzie scored more than 1,800 points before graduating in 2017 – McCracken is considered one of the best pure shooters in county history. She burst on the scene as a freshman by averaging 15.4 points per game while making 65 three-pointers for a team that won the South Jersey Group I championship. She then scored 22.3 points and 7.2 rebounds while making 103 three-pointers for a South Jersey finalist team as a sophomore. Then last season, McCracken set a single-season program record for three-pointers with 107 while scoring 22.7 points and gathering 10.4 rebounds per game for a Lady Warrior team that won its second South Jersey title in three seasons. So far this season, she’s averaging 24.0 points and 9.8 rebounds while having swished 21 three-pointers through eight games.

Along the way, McCracken has made big shots – who can forget the 30-foot buzzer beater to stun Middle Township last season – and played in numerous big games, both in the regular season and in the state playoffs.

While McCracken has those two major milestones on the horizon, she also reached another in Monday’s 77-23 win over Salem Tech. She went past 700 career rebounds when she collected seven to go with 26 points.

All in a day’s work for one of the best scorers – and players – this area has ever seen.