Mandeville senior Alanna Benoit was honored on Jan. 6 for surpassing 2,000 career points. With Benoit are family members from left, Daniel, Mikey, Jennifer, Hannah, Kayla and DJ Benoit.
Mandeville senior guard Alanna Benoit couldn’t believe the moment had finally come.
Since she was a freshman, Benoit played a pivotal role on the Skippers’ basketball team, and now, it was time for her to receive her flowers.
The quiet 5-foot-9 athlete was honored for surpassing 2,000 career points — the first Skipper to eclipse the milestone — during a 42-23 win over Northshore on Jan. 6.
“It means a lot to me,” Benoit said. “It was special to have some of the other 1,000-point scorers here to celebrate. Their support was amazing.”
Benoit entered this season just 141 points shy of the school record of 1,891 points, set by Elise Reilly in 2016. The McNeese State signee blew by that mark and sits at 2,162 career points through 18 games this season.
“She’s making a lot of young girls better this year and building character for our program for the future,” Mandeville coach Melissa Weinmunson said. “Having a player like that has been huge. She’s been able to weather the storm this year, and she’s taking the pressure off some of our younger players as they improve. She just brings a lot to the table every day. She’s making our program better at every practice.”
Thus far this season, she is averaging 22.9 points, 8.6 rebounds, 4.7 steals, 4.2 assists and 1.2 blocks per game. Against Northshore, she was two steals away from a triple-double, finishing with 23 points, 13 rebounds and eight steals.
“I always want to keep striving to be better,” Benoit said. “I want to become the best version of me that I can be, especially as a teammate. There have been a lot of struggles and a lot of time in the gym. It’s been a lot of sweat and tears, but it is all worth it.”
A young Skippers’ team started the season 2-7, but they have rebounded by winning nine straight games to improve to 11-7.
Weinmunson said that Benoit has been a big part of that surge as she “flirts with a triple-double often with steals, rebounds and scoring.” Her last triple-double came on Dec. 9 against Glen Oaks, where she had 21 points, 11 assists, 10 rebounds and seven steals. Two weeks later, she posted a career-high 46 points, seven rebounds and seven steals in a 73-64 win over Pine.
“She’s a player who stays in the gym and works,” Weinmunson said. “Her work ethic is impressive. When she gets frustrated in practice or a game, she goes to work so that she doesn’t feel like that again. She goes above and beyond to get better every day.”
Benoit, who turned 17 in December, said playing against tough competition is how she continues to improve.
“I’ve definitely improved on elevating with my shot,” she said. “That has helped me so much. I’ve worked a lot on my ball handling. I’m really a combo guard, so there has been a lot of work put into what I need to learn to be a true point guard in high school. I just keep working on my IQ and getting better each day.”
As for why she picked McNeese State for next season, Benoit said it was an easy choice since the Cowgirls have been recruiting her since her freshman season.
“It just felt like home,” Benoit said. “As soon as I saw them on the sidelines at one of my games, I knew it was the place for me. My original dream was not to go too close to home, and then everything changed. I just want to be in that environment.”
But for now, Benoit, who has about 850 career rebounds, said her focus is on helping the Skippers make the deepest postseason run possible.
