By Rich Palzewic
Sports Editor
De Pere – Coming into De Pere’s Jan. 28 game against Middleton, girls’ basketball player Jordan Meulemans needed 11 points to break the 1,000 career point barrier.
The junior superstar scored her milestone basket with a move in the post during the Redbirds’ 72-32 victory at De Pere High School.
“The moment means everything to me,” said the 6-foot Meulemans, who led all scorers with 26 points. “The win was in my head first, but in the back of my mind, there were 11 points to get. My team was happy for me, and they wanted me to shoot every time I got the ball and were reminding me about it all day. I’m glad my family could see it, too.”
Meulemans now has 1,015 career points, which moved her into a tie for fifth place on the all-time scoring list in program history.
“My first nine points came pretty easy tonight, but that 11th one was difficult,” she said. “I was thinking about it too much, so I was glad when I finally did it. Now I can move forward and not have to think about it anymore.”
Jenny Steffen (1,389), Cyndi Nyman (1,133), Heather Golden (1,088) and Sara Steffen (1,058) are the only four De Pere players in front of Meulemans.
She’s currently tied with Rachel Kerkhoff on the all-time list and passed Beth Janssen (1,001) during the game.
“When I was a freshman, I saw Rachel Kerkhoff score her 1,000th career point her senior year, so it was something I was thinking about,” Meulemans said. “I remember thinking that was a crazy amount of points, and now it happened for me. I got the chills (when the ball went through the hoop).”
De Pere head coach Jeremy Boileau, whose team is currently 18-2 and ranked No. 10 in the latest Wissports.net Division 1 Coaches Poll, said Meulemans is a special player.
“It’s a huge milestone, especially with her being a junior and missing several games at the end of last season,” he said. “She was a big part of our success during her freshman and sophomore years, but she’s stepped up her leadership role this season. She’s put in lots of hard work.”
Boileau said Meulemans makes lots of tough shots.
“She doesn’t hesitate to take the tough 3-pointer in a big moment or attack the rim,” he said. “Most people see what she does offensively, but she gets after it on defense, too. She barely leaves the floor, and she never looks tired. She wants to compete and is in great shape.”
Meulemans, who has about 10 Division I scholarship offers – including from the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, Butler, Creighton, UW-Milwaukee, Tulsa and St. Thomas – is averaging 21.3 points per game.
“I’m happy with any college that wants to recruit me,” Meulemans said. “I’m narrowing it down some, but I’m thinking of deciding toward the end of spring. I want to get through the high school season and then focus on AAU (Amateur Athletic Union) basketball.”
Meulemans scored 266 points (11.1 per game) her freshman year and followed that up the next season with 324 points (17.1 per game).
With four more regular-season games remaining this season before the playoffs begin, Meulemans should move into at least third place on the all-time De Pere scoring list heading into her senior year.