The Mustangs didn’t win the state tournament in the 2021-22 season, but the team, along with first year Mount Vernon coach Nate Sanderson, sure did turn the program around.
Sanderson came to the program after a disappointing 2020-21 season which ended with a 1-20 record.
This year’s team ended the season 12-11, the first time the Mustangs wrapped a year with a winning record since 2017-18, when they went 16-7.
That was also the last time they’d made it past the first round of the regional tournament until this year.
The Mustangs placed third in the WaMaC East, going 6-4 in their conference, which Sanderson called “rugged”.
To top it off, Sanderson’s crew set five school records this season.
“We have made incredible progress, and most importantly, we have built a culture that players are proud of and that they enjoy being part of every day,” said Sanderson.
For the record
As a team, the Mustangs made 161 three-point field goals during the 2021-22 season, breaking the previous record of 137, set in 2014-15.
The crew also broke a school record with three-point field goal percentage, connecting 36.1 percent of the time. The previous record, 35.1 percent, had stood since the 2009-10 season.
Additionally, they became the first Mustangs team to record 300 assists in a single season, raising the bar to 302, knocking down the previous mark of 298 in 2016-17.
Mount Vernon junior Kameron Brand set a new single season record for three-point field goal percentage, nailing 48 percent of her attempts beyond the arc. The record had been held by Liz Skowtoski, who had a 43.5 percent success rate.
Senior Mustang McKenzie Rentschler racked up 56 three-point field goals on the season, which was enough to place her in second place in the category behind Skotwoski, who sank 63 in the 2011-12 season 10 years earlier. Rentschler was second place for three-point field goals made in a career as well, with 136. First place again is held by Skowtoski, with 173.
Individual Honors
Departing senior Liz Dougherty was selected to the IBCA Academic All-State Team, as well as First Team All-Conference (WaMaC East).
Dougherty had a banner year, shooting 53.5 percent from the field, averaging 10 points per game, and ringing up a total of 230 points for the season. She lead the team in those categories and rebounding, with 6.5 boards per game.
Second Team All-Conference recipient Peyton Simpson, a sophomore, was right behind her teammate in scoring with 227 points, at 9.9 per game.
Outgoing senior Rentschler also received Second Team All-Conference recognition. Rentschler pumped in 196 points for the season, and could be counted on for an average of 8.5 points per game, and ended her final Mustang season with an effective field goal percentage of 47.4.