That shot put her at exactly 3,000 career points, a threshold crossed by just 28 other girls in the history of the state of Minnesota before this season.

“I think [I was] just letting it happen,” Mathiowetz said. “Just kind of going out and playing the game, it’s going to happen eventually if you stay healthy, so just letting it come naturally and not trying to force it. I think our team did a really good job of coming out in the game tonight, just ready to go strong. We just played them last Thursday, so we had things we wanted to improve on. I think just letting the game flow and seeing what happened.

Mathiowetz becomes the second St. Mary’s player and the fifth player in Journal coverage area to score 3,000 career points.

“I think it’s just a lot of gratitude,” Mathiowetz said. “I think just the people that have been helping get me here, and obviously all my teammates and family and friends. Just the amount of support they give me makes me want to get better every day. Anyone out there, you can do it if you just set your mind on it and dream big. Just reach for the stars if you can.”

Staff photo by Ari Selvey New Ulm Cathedral’s Jayde Altermatt (10) puts up a shot while guarded by Sleepy Eye St. Marys’ Olivia Schieffert Monday in a Tomahawk Division girls basketball game at Cathedral High School.

Mathiowetz has been playing varsity at St. Mary’s since seventh grade, when she saw her sister, Maddison, reach 3,762 points for her career, good enough for seventh-most in state history for girls basketball. Mathiowetz said she took her career one step at a time, and now finds herself as among the most prolific scorers in the state.

“I think you never really think of that right away,” she said. “You just achieve one thing, then you’re setting your goals for the next thing you want to do. I think if you just continue to get better and you put your mind to it, you can do anything that you want. Looking down the road, I think I knew I wanted to do big things and help my team have success. This has just been a part of it.”

Mathiowetz credits the St. Mary’s program and the rest of her support system for a lot of her success.

“Just the program that I come from, St. Mary’s, they always seek hard work and dedication, and you can do whatever you want,” she said. “Giving glory to God for allowing me to play this sport, then obviously my teammates around me. A lot of people before me, especially my sister, set the bar pretty high, so just seeing that and being inspired by that and going after it myself.”

The University of North Dakota commit said she is looking to continue to improve as a team, as St. Mary’s won 66-24 to improve to 15-0 with its eyes on a return to the state tournament.

Staff photo by Ari Selvey Sleepy Eye St. Marys’ Brynne Ibberson (11) drives to the basket while defended by New Ulm Cathedral’s Shay Wilfhart Monday in a Tomahawk Division girls basketball game at Cathedral High School.

“Doing the little things,” she said. “Obviously we’re winning games right now, but now we want to clean up the little things in practice and in games. Just being really precise in what we do and continuing to out and execute those things. At the end of the year, we want to be way better than we were at the beginning of the year. Just putting our heads down and working and seeing what we can do at the end of the season.”

Mathiowetz scored 28 points to lead the Knights before being subbed out after her milestone shot in running time. Mathiowetz also had five rebounds, three assists and four steals in the game.

St. Mary’s head coach Bruce Woitas said it has been something special to watch Mathiowetz over the course of her career.

“She’s a very hard worker,” Woitas said. “She’s really progressed her game over those five years. She was really good as a seventh-grader already and just saw scrap time as a seventh grader, but she started as an eighth-grader, and she’s really grown as a player and a leader. She’s a very unselfish player as well, distributes the ball really well. She’s a great player, and the work ethic and passion that she has for the game of basketball, it’s nice to see her accomplish that feat.”

Also for St. Mary’s, Olivia Schieffert scored 22 points with seven assists and 10 steals, while Brynne Ibberson added 8 points and three steals. For Cathedral, Shay Wilfahrt and Jayde Altermatt each had 6 points, with Taylor Lamecker adding 4 points.

St. Mary’s started the game with a 16-0 run, with Margo Finstad getting the Greyhounds on the board with a layup. St. Mary’s continued to score to push the lead out to 37-4 on a pair of free throws from Schieffert, and Lamecker put up two consecutive layups to make it a 37-8 game. A transition layup by Mathiowetz made it a 48-8 game at halftime, with Mathiowetz sitting just 6 points away from 3,000 after scoring 22 in the first half.

Mathiowetz hit a 3-pointer to make it a 57-11 game, and Wilfahrt and Altermatt both hit 3s to make it a 57-14 game. Mathiowetz took an offensive rebound back out to the 3-point line, lined up the shot, and drained the 3 for her 3,000th career point. Mathiowetz celebrated with her teammates and family, then sat out the rest of the game as St. Mary’s went on to win 66-24.

St. Mary’s hosts Springfield on Friday, while Cathedral (6-10, 4-7) hosts Red Rock Central on Friday.