BETHALTO - The Civic Memorial High School girl’s basketball team has been on a tear this season, currently sitting at 26-4, and a major contributor to their success has been senior center Claire Christeson.
While yes, she has been out the majority of this season, it’s what she does off the court and on the bench that is really inspiring to her team. During the game against East St. Louis, where her side won 57-55, she was one of the loudest ones in the gym as she cheered on her Eagles from the sideline. She was grabbing her teammates' water when they needed it and was always one of the first ones in the huddle during timeouts, showing that you don’t have to lead the team in points to be a team leader.
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Claire Christeson is the Tom Lane State Farm Insurance Female Athlete of the Month for CM.
“I think it is very important. I’ve had multiple teammates come up to me and say how much it has helped knowing that I’m on the bench supporting them,” Christeson said. She added: “that’s what they’ve always done for me, so I just want to do the same back.”
Christeson missed every game this season but one, Senior Night. An ACL injury kept her sidelined but back on January 27 against Triad, in the final minutes, she came out and scored her only point of the season from the free-throw line. She got a standing ovation from the crowd and it was a very touching moment for one of the program’s best players in recent memory. Christeson calls that time “her favorite basketball memory ever.”
Don’t let the injury fool you, because she’s not done yet. Claire plans on continuing her basketball career while attending the University of Missouri-St. Louis and working toward her dream of being an early elementary school teacher.
The future is certainly bright, but her accolades for CM cannot be ignored. She will finish her high school career having played 77 games and scored 342 points.
Claire’s presence will surely be missed at CM, on and off the court.
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