No matter how this season ends for state-ranked St. Vincent girls’ basketball, senior Allie Patrick and the rest of her teammates had a night to remember last Monday at home.
It was Senior Night for the Indians as they cut down the nets after handling JCAA Small School Conference opponent Herculaneum 93-17 to win the conference championship for the first time in 14 years.
Prior to the game, St. Vincent honored its longtime starter Patrick, as well as her sister Mallory and fellow seniors Haley Emmendorfer and Alivia Ellis.
Along with helping her team make history, Allie scored the 1,000th point of her high school career in the second quarter and is now the program's second-all-time leading scorer.
Patrick needed 22 points heading into the game to accomplish this feat as she finished with a game-high 25, knocking down three of the Indians’ 13 3-pointers.
Right after she reached 1,000 career points, Patrick was first met with a hug by her sister Mallory and then the rest of her team.
Allie walked to her high school head coach Mel Kirn after that, who also greeted her with a hug and announced her accomplishment to the home crowd that was celebrating the star senior with a standing ovation.
“My teammates wanted it so badly for me, and that’s kind of what made me want it even more,” Patrick said. “They wanted it for me because they want to see me succeed. After I got it, the first person I saw was my sister, so it was just a really good moment for me.”
It was indeed a fun game all around for the Indians, who recorded their second-highest scoring total of the year outside of their 102-point outing in the First State Community Bank Holiday Classic.
Along with Allie’s three 3s, Emmendorfer knocked down four treys and scored 16 points as the two are the program’s all-time 3-point leaders, with Allie in first (134) and Haley second (122).
Patrick’s sister Mallory, who rarely shoots from beyond the arc, sank both of her attempts from 3-point range and finished with 10 points.
“It was such a fun night altogether — we had so many good plays, and I was so happy to see Mallory and Alivia hit those 3s,” Allie said. “[Mallory and I] have been talking about it forever now. I said, ‘On Senior Night, you have to shoot them,’ and she knew I wanted her to.
“She pulls up and bangs that first one, I was so excited. Then the second one, I passed it to her and with no hesitation, she knocked it down. I was like hopping, galloping down the floor because I was so excited for her.”
Also hitting multiple 3-pointers for St. Vincent was junior Brie Rubel as she finished with 12 points, while her twin sister junior Kate Rubel also hit a three and paced Allie’s game-high 25 points with 18 of her own.
Looking at Allie’s milestone, there was no question she was going to become a 1,000-point scorer for St. Vincent — it was just a matter of when.
Last winter, Allie missed all but five games due to an ACL tear, which was one year after she became St. Vincent’s all-time single season leading scorer (471 points) as just a sophomore.
Patrick said that having to sit out last season was difficult for her mentally since basketball is her favorite sport.
Allie and the Indians were also coming off one of the best seasons in school history in 2022-23, winning a single season record 24 games and bringing home the program's first district title since 2011.
Something that has helped lift Patrick up, though, is the historic season St. Vincent is putting together this winter, currently sitting at 20-2 overall.
One thing that makes this team special is the overall talent and that a majority of this year’s Indians can be St. Vincent's leading scorer on any given night.
Allie is currently the team’s third-leading scorer with an average of 11.5 points per game, while Brie Rubel leads the way at 13.4 points per contest as Kate is second behind her twin with 12.5.
Adams and junior Rylee Robinson are close to averaging double-digit points, too, producing 8.9 and 7.4 points each game, respectively.
“It’s so nice to know that anybody can get it done on any given night,” Allie said. “We’re so balanced, and there’s never a time where everybody is cold out there. There’s always a moment somebody going to step up, and we can lean on each other for that.
“We have so many people with experience and poise, and we’re all working together now. Coming into the season, we hadn’t all played together, or it had been a while, but we have so much experience and athleticism on the court.
“It’s crazy — sometimes I have to remind myself that this is the team I get to play with. All the girls are just awesome.”
With her and junior Lana Adams’ return from an ACL tear of her own, as well as the addition of the Rubel twins, Allie knew her senior year was going to be unique.
Not only do these Indians have their eyes first set on winning their second district championship in three seasons, but they also hope to become the first St. Vincent girls’ basketball team to ever reach the state final four.
“I knew that coming into this season, we were going to be real special,” Patrick said. “My expectations have even been blown out of the water. To have this kind of season after last season, it’s like God knew what we had here and what we struggled through last year.
“I can’t believe it, but I know that we’re going to work hard and that we deserve everything we’re going to get that we can work for.”
Patrick’s basketball career won’t end this season as she has multiple offers to play college basketball and is still deciding on where she’d like to go.
On top of playing alongside a future Mizzou soccer player like Adams, Allie has also benefited from playing with two fellow future college basketball players like Brie, who is St. Vincent’s single-season assist leader (104), and Kate Rubel.
Patrick and the Rubel twins have combined for 50-plus points on multiple occasions, just like on Senior Night (55 points) and in St. Vincent’s 68-49 win over Woodland (56) last Wednesday at home.
In the double-digit win over the Cardinals, Kate Rubel recorded a season and career-high 31 points and had 10 rebounds for an authoritative double-double, while Brie paced her with 18 points as Allie finished with seven.
“It’s been awesome playing with Kate and Brie,” Patrick said. “During games, I know they’re going to get it done, and they expect the same from me, so we just make each other better. It’s competitive every day in practice — they’re pushing me to be the best, and there’s no days off.
“We work together so well on that, and it’s great to know we’re all three getting better to go on to the next level.”
For Allie’s sister Mallory, who is St. Vincent’s all-time rebound leader (368), this will be her final season of playing competitive basketball as she will continue her academic career at Ole Miss.
Patrick describes Mallory as her No. 1 fan and that she couldn’t have imagined their final year of high school together having gone any better.
“It’s been so fun — this last year has been picture-perfect,” Allie said. “Her and I have got to connect on the court, and she’s been my No. 1 supporter. She’s had my back the whole season, and I know going into the postseason, we’re just going to enjoy it for all it is.”
The Patrick sisters, of course, have already played in the Class 2 volleyball state final four together this past fall, along with Emmedorfer and the Rubel twins.
St. Vincent’s success in both sports can not only be attributed to the talent and dedication these athletes have, but to the actual family and family-like bonds they share on and off the court.
“We are all like best friends — we joke around with each other a lot,” Patrick said. “I look forward to practice at the end of the day even though I know I’m gonna run and be sweating at the end, but just to compete with each other.
“It’s a fun atmosphere, and we just get along so well. We’re always texting each other and coming to the other games together — we do a lot together. It’s fun to know that I not only have great teammates on the court, but I have best friends off the court.”
