Family tradition: Steien breaks father’s school, county scoring records

Lindsay Steien isn’t one to make a big deal over personal accomplishments.

Steien hit a three-pointer early in the second half of a Tuesday game against Eau Claire Immanuel Lutheran to become the school’s all-time leading scorer in boys and girls basketball, and the humble Blair-Taylor senior gave the credit for the accomplishment to others when asked about it.

She also became the most prolific scorer in the history of Trempealeau County prep basketball with the milestone.

The person she overtook atop the school and county leaderboards, however, wasn’t shy about giving Steien props on Tuesday as he watched on from the corner of the Blair-Taylor High School gymnasium.

“She’s not a real big person who loves the spotlight, but we’ve talked about it and joked about it,” her father, Eric Steien, said. “I’ve told her, ‘If I’m going to lose it to somebody, I might as well lose it to you.’”

Eric, a 1990 graduate of Blair-Taylor, held the previous record with 1,985 points. Lindsay Steien sat at 2,025 after Saturday. 

Steien finished the game with 31 points and is the first county player ever to reach 2,000 points as the Wildcats, now 12-0, continue their undefeated season.

“It’s kind of cool that I get to do this,” Lindsay said, “but I couldn’t have done it without the help of my teammates, coaches, family, everyone.”

Teammates and fans have mentioned to the senior throughout the year that she was approaching the record, and she tried not to give it too much thought. While proud of the achievement, Steien’s focus has always been on playing her best on any given night.

“You’ve just got to focus one game at a time, not individual points. And if it happens, it happens,” she said.

Eric first thought his record could be in peril last winter when he saw how quickly his daughter hit 1,000 career points. Teams play more games now than back when he played, so he knew that Lindsay was coming for his record with her efficiency as a scorer.

Lindsay uses a dominant shooting stroke and perimeter attack but isn’t afraid to get to the rim, either. Her father conceded he was more of an interior threat.

“When she hit that 1,000 as early as she did, I thought there was a chance to make a run at it. And obviously she did.”

The family has cracked jokes back and forth over the last several weeks as the points continued to rack up and the record started to teeter.

While Lindsay avoids giving herself too much credit, the elder Steien said the record was earned the right way — through hard work.

“It’s a pretty proud moment. You like to see any kid do it, but it’s kind of cool because it’s my own kid. She works very hard on it. She works so hard for everything, not just sports, and her mom and I couldn’t be more proud,” Eric said.

Now that the record is firmly in his daughter’s grasp, Eric said he is readying himself for the occasional jab from Lindsay about who the better player is.

As for who would win a one-on-one if both players were in their prime? That’s a debate for another day.

“We play different positions. If he was down low maybe he’d get a bucket, but if he’s on the wing, I don’t know. It could go either way probably,” Lindsay teased.

Her father reluctantly gave the shooter the upper hand.

“I’d probably just take her down low and she wouldn’t have a chance,” Eric playfully jeered.

As soon as the shooting from deep would start, though, Eric admitted he would be in trouble against the best scorer in Blair-Taylor and Trempealeau County hoops history.

“I don’t know about that part, but I’d try.”