Over her four-year varsity career at Alpena High School, Wisniewski demolished every steal record possible and engraved herself high among the best defenders in Alpena history.

“Lots of credit goes to Coach Andrews and Coach Dubey for giving me an opportunity to start all four years on the varsity team, which is a huge accomplishment,” Wisniewski said. “I was always given an awesome opportunity and did my best to take advantage of my role.”

The first record fell during her junior year of high school when she broke the single-game steals record.

Uniquely, on the season’s first game, Wisniewski and the Wildcats traveled to Oscoda and terrorized anyone who dribbled the basketball.

News Photo by Owen Kinzey Reese Wisniewski takes the shot from the three-point line in a game against Gaylord in Alpena. Over her four-year varsity career at Alpena High School, Wisniewski demolished every steal record possible and engraved herself high among the best defenders in Alpena history.

Wisniewski’s ability to tip passes, pressure the ball, and rip the ball away from ball handlers resulted in a record of 14 steals in one game, passing Cindy Reynold’s record, which was previously 11.

From start to finish, the Owls had no answer for Wisniewski, constantly turning the ball over until Alpena pulled away with a 57-53 win.

“I remember this game vividly because (Wisniewski) had such an outstanding game. I remember looking over to my other coaches on the bench and saying, ‘I bet you (Wisniewski) just took the single-game steals record,’ and sure enough, she did,” Alpena coach Laura Dubey said. “I’m not sure how show broke the record by three steals, but that just demonstrates how great of a defender she is.”

Wisniewski’s next steals record also came during her junior season.

This time, she shattered the amount of steals in a single season, acquiring 118.

Led by the fundamental principles of tipping, pressuring, and ripping the ball from her opponents, Wisniewski displayed these skills for the length of the season.

“I grew up coaching (Wisniewski), and to see her develop into this hard-working player is amazing to see,” Coach Dubey said. “I’m super proud of what she has already accomplished as a leader for this team, and I expect her to continue this leadership until the end of our season.”

Finally, earlier this year, on Jan. 22, Wisniewski inevitably broke the last record of 291 steals in her career.

Previously holding the most steals in a game and season, Wisniewski eclipsed the most career steals ever against Inland Lakes.

Now, with three games remaining in the season (plus the playoffs), Wisniewski stands at 320 total steals, looking to increase that number as much as possible before her career comes to a close.

With all three records accomplished and her name inscribed in the record books, Wisniewski will close her Wildcat career out strong, hoping to make a run in the playoffs before joining and playing for Alma College next year.

“We have a good chance to go far and exceed expectations. We’ve really been better about playing as a team, which will need to happen during the playoffs,” Wisniewski said. “The ending goal is still to win districts, and I definitely believe we can do that.”