Feb 12, 2019 By Les Harvath for The 5 min read

As the second quarter clock ticked down to 2:01 in West Greene’s girls basketball game against visiting Jefferson-Morgan Jan. 24, senior Kaitlyn Rizor stepped into the Lady Pioneers all-time record book.

Streaking downcourt on a fast break, Rizor fielded a pass from Madison Lempe and calmly dropped in a layup off the glass to become the eighth female in school history to eclipse the 1,000-career point barrier. Rizor’s 16-point effort against the Lady Rockets pushed her stellar career total to 1004, moving her past 1999 grad Lauren Hull, who tallied 1001 career points.

Rizor’s feat puts her in an elite group.

Through the regular season, the Lady Pioneers’ 1,000-point club was topped by the school’s all-time leading scorer and 2006 graduate Rachel Phillips at 1,838, followed by senior McKenna Lampe at 1,561, 2000 graduate Jackie Matheny at 1,419 points, senior Madison Lampe at 1,379, 1992 graduate Jennifer Wendell at 1,093 points, Rizor now at 1,082, 2014 graduate Madison Raber at 1,018 points, and 1999 graduate Lauren Hull at 1,001.

Following the 63-17 win over Jefferson Morgan, the Lady Pioneers added wins over Beth-Center, Mapletown and Sewickley Academy before having their 17-game winning streak halted by Class AA power Bishop Canevin. They bounced back from that with wins over the Lady Gators and Avella to close the regular season with a 20-2 overall record and a Section 2-A mark of 12-0, extending their section winning streak to 33.

Humbly reflecting on her feat, Rizor was quick to note that she is the third member of West Greene’s Class of 2019 to score 1,000 points. Twins Madison and McKenna Lampe reached the 1,000-point plateau last year, when West Greene was the Class A runner-up, falling to Winchester Thurston in the WPIAL Class A finals at the University of Pittsburgh’s Petersen Events Center.

“This is naturally an incredible individual accomplishment,” Rizor said, “but I could have never done this without my teammates and coaches. This has taken a lot of focus and practice, going from season to season. And the fact that there are three of us from the same team, especially from the same class of 2019, to achieve this goal (of scoring 1,000 career points) is something that does not happen too often.”

While the team’s achievements are, indeed, significant, Rizor offered an explanation: “We have a close team and we push each other on the court, but we also are a close team off the court. We all work together and share common goals. There is no drama among our teammates.”

Jordan Watson, in his eighth season at the helm of the Lady Pioneers, chuckled at the thought of having to order a new supply of basketballs for next year, with another 1,000-point ball added to the trophy case. When Rizor calmly dropped in the layup, the game was stopped as Rizor was awarded the historic ball.

Taking stock of Rizor’s accomplishment, Watson, a 2002 West Greene grad who played basketball for the Pioneers, emphasized that Rizor as the third player on this team to score 1,000 points, an indication of the overall talent on the squad.

But Watson quickly pointed to Rizor’s strengths.

“Kaitlyn’s versatility is her strength,” he observed. “She can play the point, center, forward, all five positions. On defense she can guard the point guard or opposing center, any opponent by position. Defensively, she is always in the right spot for rebounds and can go up after the ball.” Watson added that Rizor has started every game for four seasons and was a skilled passer and ball handler as early as her freshman season.

Offensively, Watson explained that Rizor has been consistent throughout her career, scoring 165 points as a freshman, 330 as a sophomore, 300 as a junior, and 287 thus far her senior season, with postseason games remaining. An all-county selection for two years, Rizor was recently named Greene County Athlete of the Week.

At 5-foot-10 and West Greene’s tallest player, Rizor’s career stats show her all-around talent. Through the Beth-Center game, her totals were as follows: 547 rebounds, 224 assists, and 262 steals, according to numbers provided by West Greene grad and assistant coach Justin Allen, who teaches science at Carmichaels High School.

Rizor’s single-game high in rebounds was 16 versus California earlier this season, and in points was 23, which she recorded as a junior. After playing the point for three seasons, Rizor moved to forward this season, Watson noted, and has solid 15-17 foot range.

Personal stats and achievements aside, Rizor proudly said her best memory playing basketball at West Greene was the team’s trip to the WPIAL finals last year.

“But our goal is to win it all this year,” she quickly added. West Greene is currently the top-ranked team in Class A.

With her scholastic career in its final semester, Rizor is considering a career in nursing, with West Virginia Wesleyan on her radar. However, Rizor recently visited South Carolina Beaufort, a smaller college, “since I am from a small high school,” she noted.

Even though Rizor has eye-popping numbers in basketball, her numbers in softball are more remarkable, and she has expressed an interest in the South Carolina school’s softball program.

Playing second base and hitting fourth-or-fifth in West Greene’s lineup, Rizor batted .425 as a freshman, .540 as a sophomore, and .476 last year. She has received All-State First Team honors in softball each of the past two seasons, when the Lady Pioneers won their second and third consecutive WPIAL championships and back-to-back PIAA titles.

In the classroom, Rizor has a 3.7 grade average, and is a member of the National Honor Society, Peer Mentoring, Peer Court, Science and Ski clubs, and is president of the Aquaponics Club.