Lane, Pluimer inducted in the Patriots Hall of Fame

PEQUOT LAKES — Two new members have been inducted into the Pequot Lakes Patriots Hall of Fame.

Vanessa Lane and Haley (Wiebolt) Plumier received their plaques and were presented to the crowd before the Patriot girls basketball game on Friday, Feb. 24.

Lane – a 2014 graduate –participated in cross-country, volleyball, basketball and track, and found success in all areas. In track, she was a four-time state champion and the first female athlete in school history to have an individual state champion title in the sport. She also anchored the 4x100 relay her freshman year to become the first state champions in school history as a team for the sport. She was the first female athlete to go to state in four events. She still holds school records in the 60- and 100-meter races.

In basketball, she was a key member of three state-qualifying teams. She finished her career with 1,350 points and held team records in rebounds, steals and field goal percentage. She was team MVP two years, and was selected as MVP Mid-State Conference Player of the Year Brainerd Dispatch Player of the Year in 2014.

She was also selected as Miss Pequot Lakes in 2014.

After graduating from Pequot Lakes, Lane continued her track and field career at South Dakota State University, where she was the Division-I Summit League Conference champion in the Heptathlon in 2018 and had a total of 10 top-three finishes at the Summit League conference championships. She still holds the Heptathlon record at SDSU, and ranked in the top 40 in the United States in the heptathlon.

“It is a huge honor for me,” Lane said. “I think growing up, I really tried my best in all sports, and I remember going to Hall of Fame inductions … It really means a lot to me to be able to have this award and to stand by Haley. We played basketball together, so that is really cool.”

Pluimer graduated from Pequot Lakes in 2016, where she played tennis, basketball and softball. In tennis, she compiled 152 wins and was a six-time varsity letter winner during her career. She was on the team that won the mid state conference title five times. Haley made it into the state tournament her senior year in tennis and was an all state selection.

In basketball, she compiled 1,455 points and 544 assists. She also scored 42 points in a single game, a previous school record. She was a co-Mid-State MVP twice, as well as the Dispatch Player of the Year.

In softball, she had a school record 140 hits, and a batting average of .511 her senior year. She was a three-time all-section player, a three-time all-conference player, and was second team all-state her senior year.

Currently, Pluimer is a volunteer coach for the Patriot girls basketball team.

“It is really a great honor,” Pluimer said. “Every day in middle school and high school, I walked by that wall (of hall of fame inductees) and saw those names, and I really wanted to do it myself.”

Pluimer also noted how special it was to be inducted alongside her former teammate, saying she and Lane “had a lot of fun playing basketball together.”

The two were met with a standing ovation from the Patriot fans in attendance.