‘Deep impact’: Mt. Lebanon sophomore Payton Collins develops into one of the WPIAL’s most prolific 3-point shooters

Payton Collins is considering becoming a doctor someday. Her father, Michael “Micky” Collins, Ph.D., is a superstar in the medical field as an internationally renowned expert in sports-related concussion and the director of UPMC’s sports medicine concussion program.

“I’ve always been interested in the medical field, just not exactly what he does,” said Payton, a sophomore at Mt. Lebanon High School who carries a 4.8 GPA. “I’m more of a science-minded person. I’ve kind of always wanted to be a doctor and be in that field.”

For now, Payton Collins isn’t a star in the medical field, but rather on the basketball court. Her specialty is 3-pointers, and when it comes to long-range shooters in the WPIAL, Collins has few peers. Her marksmanship has played a big part in Mt. Lebanon racing to a 13-4 overall record despite graduating three senior starters from last season’s WPIAL championship team and PIAA runner-up.

“I’m more shocked when she misses one than when she makes one,” first-year Mt. Lebanon coach Jackie DelSardo said. “Her shot has this curve to it that sometimes looks like the shot is going to be off, but then it drops right in. For me, if we can get her an open look, it’s almost automatic. It’s great for a coach to have a sophomore that can do that.”

Collins has been just that this season — great. A 5-foot-7 guard, Collins leads Mt. Lebanon in scoring with 12.6 points per game. Her excellence from behind the arc has been responsible for the majority of those points. It’s hard to imagine many WPIAL players having at least 50 3-pointers made this season, but Collins has knocked down 54 of them, an average of more than three a game.

“[Making 3-pointers] has been my main thing since I started playing,” said Collins, who averaged 7.2 points a game off the bench as a freshman.

Collins has seen her role increase considerably following the graduation of Ashleigh Connor, Reagan Murdoch and Brooke Collins, Payton’s sister. Connor, Mt. Lebanon’s all-time leading scorer, led the Blue Devils in nearly every statistical category last season, including scoring at 21 points a game. Connor (Saint Louis) and Collins (Middlebury) both play college basketball, while Murdoch plays lacrosse at American University.

“She’s had to take on the scoring role, which is pretty significant for a sophomore to have to do,” DelSardo said of Payton. “There’s no pressure on her. If she hits six 3-pointers, that’s great. But if not, we just need someone else to step up. I don’t want to put everything on just one kid. But when she’s knocking them down, we’re pretty tough.”

Payton Collins has had some prolific shooting performances this season. She’s made six 3-pointers on two occasions and drilled eight on her way to a career-high 28 points in a win against Canon-McMillan on Dec. 15.

Many players have a “favorite spot” on the court to shoot, and Collins is no different.

“Honestly, probably either the right or left corner. In a zone, that’s where the spot opens,” said Collins, who said she learned how to shoot from local shooting instructor/skills coach Steve Brodzinski.

Perhaps Mt. Lebanon’s opponents think they’re seeing double when Collins is connecting on 3s left and right, but it could be because there’s often someone else on the court who looks exactly like her. Payton and fellow sophomore Riley Collins are identical twins. Riley has started a few games, but primarily is one of the first players off the bench. Riley is an excellent 3-point shooter, as well. She’s made 20 and is averaging 5.3 points a game. Payton called their close connection on the court a case of “twin telepathy.”

“Riley has the potential,” DelSardo said of the twins, who play AAU for Drill 4 Skill. “No offense to Payton, but Riley is probably a better overall scorer. She just needs a little more experience.”

As for being able to tell the twins apart, that’s an area that DelSardo still has a long way to go.

“They crush me all the time,” she said. “If they’re standing next to each other, I don’t hesitate, but the second they’re apart, it’s like, ‘Are you Riley or are you Payton?’ At this point they get offended, and I don’t blame them.”

Payton and Riley, both 16, have two older siblings. In addition to Brooke, there’s Gabby, a sophomore who attends the University of Wisconsin. Their mother, Lynn, is a social worker.

Payton said she admires her dad, who has treated hundreds of athletes over the years, among them NASCAR great Dale Earnhardt Jr., whom Payton once got to meet. Payton said her dad coached her and Riley throughout middle school.

“He’s such an inspiration,” Payton said. “He works so hard and is very invested in our lives, which is really impressive. He does what he does and then comes home and is a dad. I just look up to him so much.”

Quite a few teams are looking up at Mt. Lebanon in the section standings. The second-place Blue Devils (7-1 in Class 6A Section 2) trail only Upper St. Clair (6-0), which handed visiting Mt. Lebanon a 57-39 loss Jan. 5. That’s Mt. Lebanon’s lone loss this calendar year.

DelSardo said it has been a smooth transition into the head coaching role after spending the past three seasons as an assistant under Dori Oldaker, who resigned in June after guiding Mt. Lebanon to four WPIAL titles and three PIAA titles in 19 seasons. DelSardo, formerly Jackie Babe, is a Mt. Lebanon Blue Devil through and through. She was a star player for Oldaker prior to graduating in 2008, and then went on to play at Duquesne and Central Connecticut State. DelSardo’s husband, Joe, was a football standout at Seton LaSalle and Pitt. The couple have three kids, ages 5, 4 and 1.

“It’s been good,” Jackie said. “I just kind of dived right in and kept going.”

DelSardo said the Blue Devils are playing a little differently this season than in years past, going at a faster pace and pressing and trapping more frequently.

“I got with [Mt. Lebanon boys coach] Joey David before the season started because I knew this is how we were going to have to play to be successful,” said DelSardo. “We’re not offensively skilled enough to set up and run play after play in hopes of getting off a shot. We had to speed teams up and speed ourselves up, as well.”

When Payton Collins squares up to shoot a 3-pointer, though, there’s no speeding her up. And if she continues to keep drilling them consistently, Mt. Lebanon is going to be a tough out in the postseason.

“We’ve been good,” she said. “I think our chemistry is really good. We miss those three seniors, but we’ve done well. [The success] might be a surprise to some, but not to us. We knew we could be pretty good.”