The Okawville Lady Rockets continued their winning streak throughout the Mascoutah Holiday Tournament to come out on top as Champions of their second tournament this season. 

Okawville started bracket play by defeating the Highland Lady Bulldogs 49-29. Their next matchup was against the undefeated Freeburg Lady Midgets on Tuesday, December 28. The team gained another win with an ending score of 49-24. Later that evening the Lady Rockets had a nail-biter against the quick-paced O’Fallon Lady Panthers team; defeating them 58-57. Alayna Kraus helped lead the team to a victory over this talented 4A school with an outstanding offensive performance of 26 points.

The Lady Rockets headed into the Championship game of the tournament with a well-deserved 15-0 record and a big game ahead of them. Facing yet another impressive 4A team, the Alton Senior RedBirds. Okawville came together and pulled out the win with a final score of 65-58. Helping to add to the program’s list of hard-earned wins was Megan Rennegarbe with 22 points.

This is the first time since 1998 that the Okawville Lady Rockets have won the Mascoutah tournament. “I think the heart and dedication each girl put out on the court is what helped make winning the Mascoutah tournament possible. Each girl knew their role and stepped up when necessary which also played a crucial part in making last week’s accomplishments happen,” says Okawville Lady Rockets starting guard, Briley Rhodes. This was not an easy accomplishment but with great coaches, hard work, and dedication the Lady Rockets made it happen. 

¨I think this team has achieved what they have because they play very unselfishly.  We have had several different players be the leading point scorer in any particular game. It makes us hard to guard because we always have someone else that we can look to in order to score. We have a great team dynamic and players that genuinely care about and have fun with one another.  This Lady Rockets team also plays very hard. They give great effort diving for loose balls, fighting for rebounds, and all of those things that are just a matter of effort.” says Okawville Head coach, Michelle Hashieder.

Not only did the Lady Rockets meet a huge team goal they also had many individual accomplishments with three players earning All-Tournament honors. Alayna Kraus, Briley Rhodes, and Megan Rennegarbe all were recognized for their efforts. “Briley, Megan, and Alayna, who each made All-Tournament team, each has several things in common. Each of them has played a lot of basketball. They put extra time and effort into the game, as they have for many years.  The three of these players also play the game extremely hard and consistently work to improve their knowledge and understanding of the game,” said Hashieder.  

While many players were recognized individually, the success of the Lady Rockets program comes from the team’s bond and support for one another. “When you see the list of accomplishments this team has already gotten it’s obviously impressive, but what is more amazing is their heart. Every member of this team plays and cheers for each other equally. It’s special to be around,” said Assistant Coach Paige Kasten.