Schenectady Daily Gazette: "Halfmoon's Courtney Pingelski earns college hoops honor"

BY MICHAEL KELLY
Gazette Sportswriter

Throughout her career playing basketball, Courtney Pingelski has always looked to keep a positive perspective. The Halfmoon native did that throughout her standout high school career at Mechanicville High School, and she brought that outlook to her women's basketball team at the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts during her freshman season this past winter.

"I try to be very supportive of everyone on my team," Pingelski said of her approach. "I always try to do my best and be there for my teammates, but we're all there for each other."

Pingelski recently earned recognition as a member of the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference's 2016 Winter Sportsmanship Team. One player from each team in the MASCAC receives the honor.

"The award says a lot about Courtney and her abilities to conduct herself as a student-athlete," MCLA women's basketball head coach Holly McGovern wrote in an email. "Courtney represents MCLA positively on the court and in the classroom, exemplifying hard work, team play, and good character."

Pingelski, 18, is finishing up her first year at the Division III college in North Adams, Mass. where she is majoring in chemistry. As a freshman playing college hoops, Pingelski earned 17 starts for MCLA and averaged 7.2 points in a season during which the Trailblazers went 14-13.

Pingelski also played soccer in high school, but said her passion was always hoops. Finding a college where she could continue her basketball career was a priority for her.

"It was always about basketball for me," she said. "My older cousin [Lindsey Gibson] played at [Division I Sacred Heart]. I always looked up to her and wanted to follow her path."

The first time Pingelski heard of MCLA, which has fewer than 2,000 undergraduate students, was when McGovern began recruiting her to come play for the Trailblazers. After a visit, Pingelski said it was easy for her to make a decision about her future that she has not regretted.

"Definitely the community there," Pingelski said is her favorite thing about the school. "I thought it was really nice out there and I liked the size of the school. Once you pass someone there, you say 'Hi' and you know them. I love that aspect of it."

On the court this past winter, Pingelski began the season as a starter before transitioning to a bench role. She produced her season's three highest-scoring games — an 18-point effort against Salem State University, and 16-point contributions against Fitchburg State University and Norwich University — after she became a reserve.

Getting consistent minutes throughout the season, Pingelski said, was a personal success for her as a freshman.  

"I didn't expect that. It kind of just came to me," she said. "I was just playing and enjoying it."

As a sophomore next season, Pingelski is likely to see more playing time and take on a larger role with the Trailblazers. Coming up, she said a number of players from the team plan to play together in a summer league to start working toward the 2016-17 season.

"We want to pick up where we left off and keep improving," she said.