To the Editor:
Swish! Let me tell you a story about the amazing McCracken sisters of Wildwood High School.
These three sisters have walked the halls of my school since September 2013. They each have been remarkable athletes as well as high academic students. The oldest sister, Mackenzie, played basketball for the Lady Warriors from 2013-2017. She scored 1,896 points during her career and won a South Jersey Group 1 title her senior year against Haddon Township. Mackenzie led all scorers with 26 points.
The middle sister, Maddie, played basketball from 2015-2019. She scored 2,001 points during her career and won the same South Jersey title with her older sister as a sophomore on that team. She also played in the South Jersey final her senior year but fell a little short of victory against Haddon Township as well. She was the leading scorer for her junior and senior years.
The youngest sister, Macie, played basketball from 2021-2025. She surpassed both of her sisters with 2,478 points as well as 911 rebounds. She also won South Jersey Group 1 titles in her freshman and junior years. She was the leading scorer in the first championship game as a freshmen and tied for leading scorer in the second along with Angela Wilber. She played in the South Jersey Group 1 final again on March 7 but fell short against perennial contender Haddon Township.
Macie just eclipsed local legend Lauren Holden of Lower Cape May Regional (2,476) to become the fifth-highest scoring girl in South Jersey history as well as top 25 in state history. The Holden family is well known for several high scoring family members.
I guess I would be remiss without mentioning some other high-scoring Wildwood Lady Warriors who preceded these three girls. Monica Johnson had an incredible 3,173 points and three consecutive state titles. Lana Harshaw had 1,516 points and played with Monica. Latifah McNeal scored 1,583 points and also won a South Jersey title. Finally, Jessica Freeman scored 1,750 points during her career and would have scored more if not injured her senior year. High school basketball is a must-watch for the local community.
In addition to these accolades for the McCracken sisters, each excelled in track and field, cross-country and academics. Each broke records in distances between 800m and 3200m as well as the cross-country 5k marks. They were essentially beating each other in subsequent years for the record.
As I mentioned earlier, all three were outstanding academic students as well, finishing near the top of their class. Maddie, the middle sister, created a charitable organization to support local sports participation called the Step Back Foundation. It has various charitable events and sells apparel to raise money for this great cause.
It has been my pleasure as well as my community’s to watch these girls compete and grow into fine young adults. Finally, these three girls exemplify what you can accomplish in high school with grit, determination, work ethic and of course athletic DNA in your favor.
