Gibault Catholic High School will induct its 2025 Athletic Hall of Fame class during halftime of this Saturday’s varsity boys basketball game against Civic Memorial. 

The newest Hall of Fame inductees are the 2000 state champion boys bowling squad and 2012 graduate Hannah Wessel Sasser, who was an all-state volleyball player. 

Members of the 2000 boys bowling squad include coaches Larry Schaltenbrand and Tony Palazzolo and players Matt Kaestner, Aaron Woodside, Tim Mitchell, Chris Monterusso and Eric Frey. 

This team was the first state champion in school history. 

The state bowling tournament took place that year at St. Clair Bowl in O’Fallon. Kaestner rolled a 225.56 per game average to place first overall for the Hawks, who went 11-1 that season and also won the Collinsville Super Bowl Invite.

“At the beginning of the season, a coach has no clue of how solid a team may or may not be, and we felt very good about our chances,” Schaltenbrand said after winning the title nearly 25 years ago. “Neither of us (coaches) envisioned a state championship, and we didn’t ever mention it as a goal. They rose to the occasion, and the rest is history.”

Wessel’s highlights include 12 varsity letters (four in volleyball, four in soccer, three in cheerleading, one in basketball), soccer MVP, Vernie Moffitt Award,  and St. Louis Post-Dispatch Scholar Athlete. 

During Wessel’s volleyball career at Gibault, she was a three-year varsity captain. She led the Hawks with 281 kills her senior year and had 605 career kills.

She helped Gibault to a fourth place finish at the IHSA Class 1A state tournament in 2011, resulting in her being named all-state. 

Wessel went on to play volleyball for four years at McKendree University, where she earned Academic All-GLVC honors twice and had over 600 kills. 

She was second on the team in kills during her sophomore year at McKendree with 234 kills.