Women's Basketball Senior Stories: Mandy Piechowski
2/5/2010 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Feb. 5, 2010
As the 2010 women's basketball senior day approaches, MSUSpartans.com will feature each of the team's four graduating seniors in the weeks leading up to the Feb. 28 Breslin Center finale. First up is senior guard Mandy Piechowski.
By Nicole Marble, MSU Athletic Communications Student Assistant
Growing up on the east side of Michigan, MSU senior Mandy Piechowski was the all-star point guard of her high school basketball team and still holds the school's career scoring record. She was rated No. 2 and No. 6 in Michigan respectively by The Detroit News and Detroit Free Press her senior year. When her focus turned to college hoops, her biggest expectation was to develop close relationships.
"I was never someone who thought I would want to be surrounded by 15 girls all the time. It's a hard four years being a student-athlete and to know that there is always someone there by your side is a good feeling", says Piechowski.
The campus of Michigan State University is less than 100 miles from Piechowski's hometown of Shelby Township, Mich., and although her family isn't as far away as most player's families, she felt "there were genuine people recruiting me that were really here to help me and provide a support system. No matter who comes into our program, I feel like it's always been a welcoming and family-type program."
This season, Piechowski is a captain for the second year in a row. Accompanied by seniors Lauren Aitch, Allyssa DeHaan and Aisha Jefferson, she focuses her role as captain on communication.
"I think I kind of stay on top of everybody, where to be and when to be there, and who needs to be there." She refers to herself as the "calmer one on the sidelines watching and observing things" and trying to help her younger teammates improve. "I've really tried to tell them where they can improve and things to improve now, things that I wish I would have improved earlier, so they can have the career that they're looking for."
During her final season as a Spartan, the team has had their ups and downs. The beginning of December started out well with a huge win against No. 4-ranked North Carolina, but the start of the Big Ten season was an uphill battle for the Spartans. They lost their first two conference games to Indiana and Wisconsin, but have since gone 6-3 and are currently on a four-game winning streak.
"I think we're kind of getting on the right track now at the right time and I think we can finish out the Big Ten season with a bang."
They have seven conference games left before the Big Ten Tournament begins on March 4 at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Ind.
"As long as we can finish out this season and go into the Big Ten Tournament with the drive that we've had in our last couple of games, I think we'll be alright because we have four seniors that want to finish on a good note."
When asked her most memorable MSU moment she laughs, "I know, the expected answer, definitely the Duke game".
She's referring to the very memorable Duke vs. MSU NCAA Tournament Second Round game at the Breslin Center in 2009. It was the first reunion between former MSU women's basketball coach, Joanne P. McCallie, and the MSU players she left to coach the Blue Devils.
"When she (McCallie) left, it kind of made you feel like she was leaving for someone better."
The No.9 seed MSU defeated No. 1 seed Duke 63-49 and for Piechowski, "that win was just a great feeling."
After their win Piechowski celebrated with the fans by rushing the Breslin court for the very first time.
After she graduates in May with a bachelor's degree in Journalism, Piechowski plans to pursue her dream of broadcasting from the sidelines of college basketball and football games. She has already started putting her on-camera tape together, interning with local television station WILX channel 10 and the MSU Athletic Communications department. She hopes that with the connections she has made someone will lead her in the right direction to making her dream a reality. She does know one thing. After graduation she wants to move somewhere warm.
"I think I'm just ready for something new. I feel like going somewhere else is going to get me that feeling of starting a new path for myself."
