NEW GLARUS — Knight fans were treated to a show during New Glarus’s 62-34 victory over Waterloo on Tuesday, Feb. 7. Before the game, 2021 graduate Jaylynn Benson was honored for setting the school’s all-time scoring record of 1,374 points during her senior year. Then, five minutes into the game, junior Lindsey Schadewalt broke that record.

“It was really nice. It’s hard to see everyone get everything you didn’t get during your senior year — your biggest year,” Benson said of the honor. “We are so close, so I’m happy for her [Lindsey]. She deserves this so much. She’s a great player. It’s special that we both got recognized on the same night.”

Schadewalt was just a freshman when Benson set the record, but in the following years, Schadewalt still looked to Benson as a role model.

“It feels great, but I really appreciate what Jaylynn has done in the past,” Schadewalt said. “She was a senior when I was a freshman. She took me in, and we got along really well. It was awesome to have her as a leader on that team.”

Schadewalt needed just four points to break the record, and she went to work right away. She scored the first points of the game and, after a Grace Nommensen bucket, Lindsey went to the line for a pair of free throws. She made the first one but missed the second, record-setting point. Waterloo committed a line violation, giving Schadewalt another opportunity.

Although she missed the second attempt, Schadewalt went down the floor on the next possession and scored, breaking Benson’s record. It had been just 68 days since Schadewalt had scored her 1,000 career point. In the 16 games since that threshold, she averaged 22.7 points per game. 

“I honestly didn’t know what I was at or what the previous record was, so when they took the timeout and announced it, it was a really big shock,” Schadewalt said.

Record in hand, Schadewalt didn’t stop. She scored the next eight points, including her first 3-pointer. With another basket from Nommensen, New Glarus had a 17-4 lead, which forced a Waterloo timeout midway through the half.

Alex Atwell scored out of the break, as Schadewalt stole the ball and pushed it up the court to Atwell. In similar fashion, Schadewalt grabbed a defensive rebound and dribbled untouched down the court for two.

“It was the difference in the ball game — our transition points that gave us the cushion,” New Glarus head coach Kevin Parman said. “They did try to slow it down and play junk defense like we see all the time. It has to be our defense that leads to offense. Sooner or later, they have to pick it up or they are conceding the game.”

Atwell and Schadewalt then connected for the next four points, assisting one another for baskets. Payton Schneider came alive in the final minutes of the half, dishing the ball to Nommensen for a bucket and turning a steal into two points of her own.

In the second half, New Glarus and Waterloo exchanged a pair of baskets before the Knights went on a 9-0 run. Schadewalt drained her second 3-pointer then found Elle Lancaster for two. To go up by 30, Bella Brenkman assisted Nommensen for a bucket. Atwell capped the run with a pair of free throws.

The Pirates responded with three consecutive scores from Emma Baumann, including an offensive put-back. Melanie Fink broke up the scoring with her first points of the game, followed by an offensive put-back from Atwell. Brenkman then stole the ball and went down for two. She assisted Atwell on the next basket.

Ava Jaehnke sank a pair of 3-pointers, but the Knights pressed on. Schneider scored her third and fourth points, while Megan Peterson and Jordyn Runde got on the board. The Pirates ended the game with a free throw from Brenn Huebner. 

Schadewalt finished the game with 26 points, followed by Atwell with 12. Nommensen trailed with eight points. Elle Lancaster chipped in five points, while Schneider had a pair of buckets. Fink, Peterson and Brenkman scored two points each, while Runde had one free throw.

With the win, New Glarus (20-0 ranked No. 5 in Division 3) clinched at least a share of the Capitol South conference, its second in as many years.

“We want to be better than we were last year. Yes, we got a share [of the conference title], but we don’t want anybody else to put up the 23 this year,” Parman said.

The Knights must win one of its next two conference games or hope for a Cambridge loss to secure the title outright.