THE RIDER FILE PHOTO
When a shot gets up in the air, Charlotte O’Keefe has one thought on her mind, “Go after it … create a little bit of chaos.”
Currently, she ranks second in the NCAA in rebounds per game, while also leading the Southland Conference in six other statistical categories: rebounds per game, defensive rebounds per game, offensive rebounds per game, total rebounds, minutes per game and double-doubles. O’Keefe also recently broke the women’s program block record for UTRGV, with her career total sitting at 134.
“[The block record] doesn’t mean a whole lot to me, to be honest,” she said. “I think it’s more a record of longevity. I’ve been here for four years. I’m [6-feet 3-inches] so, naturally, I’m going to get a couple of blocks. … I don’t think it’s anything all that special.”
Head coach Lane Lord said he believes her talent reminds him of former NBA player Dennis Rodman.
“Rodman just had a knack for the basketball, and she kind of reminds me of that,” Lord said. “[O’Keefe] just knows where the ball’s going to go. … Some people say you have a nose or knack for rebounding, and she certainly does.”
He said what separates her from the others is also her conditioning and mental strength.
“[O’Keefe’s] conditioning is so good that she can play 40 minutes a game; most players can’t,” Lord said. “That’s all mental toughness. She’s able to mentally grind through games … and why she can continue to have good numbers on the rebounds.”
For O’Keefe, the game comes down to what she can control.
“Effort and energy are something I can always control,” she said. “Going after loose balls, getting rebounds, that’s something I can always do regardless of if shots are going in or how I’m feeling.”
Earlier in the season, she suffered a broken hand during a Dec. 2 game against Lamar University, placing her on the sideline for the next six games.
“She didn’t like it; her whole life she’s never had an injury,” Lord said. “She wanted to play two days later. … That just shows you how much she loves to play.”
Gianna Angiolet, a sophomore guard, said O’Keefe continued “leading from the sideline” despite her injury.
“She just kind of kept doing what she could to still be there for us,” Angiolet said. “Then when it was time for her to be back, we all just encouraged her because it’s tough coming back from an injury.”
When O’Keefe recovered, Lord said she returned as if “she had never been hurt.”
“She just kept doing what she does,” he said. “Her first game back, she had 20 points and 20 rebounds. She was back to being Charlotte.”
As a senior, O’Keefe said she knows the clock is ticking down on her final season. Even with new records within reach, her focus is not on statistics.
“I hope they remember me for being a good person and a good teammate: less about how I played and more about how I treated them and made them feel,” she said.
Angiolet added she is a “great leader,” and everyone on the team loves her.
“Every time we go into the locker room, she’s always the first to speak and bring us back to earth,” she said. “If things aren’t going our way, she’ll try to talk about what we can control and how we can get back together. It’s great to have someone so passionate leading our team.”
While the numbers and shattered records may define both her season and career, O’Keefe’s effort, leadership and humility might impact the program long after she leaves, according to Lord.
“She’ll go down as one of the greats,” he said. “I think the mark she’s going to leave in our program is what she’s done for our younger players and her example that she’s left for the rest of the program.”
