{"id":84637,"date":"2021-04-19T14:59:10","date_gmt":"2021-04-19T14:59:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sandbox.web.rcn.net\/rcntv\/?p=84637"},"modified":"2023-04-24T14:29:48","modified_gmt":"2023-04-24T14:29:48","slug":"koo-kowl-ski","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.astound.com\/atvn\/koo-kowl-ski\/","title":{"rendered":"Koo-Kowl-Ski!"},"content":{"rendered":"

The views expressed in this blog are<\/em> those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of RCN or any other agency, organization, employer or company.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Read the title with emphasis, please!\u00a0 That\u2019s the way I would announce her name when Natalie would do something spectacular in a game.\u00a0 I said it that way often in the past four years (3.4 years since the coronavirus cut this year short by 60%).\u00a0 I am talking about Natalie Kucowski of the Lafayette<\/a> women\u2019s basketball team.<\/p>\n

I was able to scream it to myself once again this week when she accomplished something no other women\u2019s basketball player in Lafayette history could.\u00a0 She is the first to be drafted by the WNBA<\/a>, the women\u2019s equivalent to the men\u2019s NBA.\u00a0 With the 35th<\/sup> pick (that\u2019s right \u2013 the 35th<\/sup> player chosen in the entire nation), Natalie was selected by the Seattle Storm<\/a>.\u00a0 Seattle is the team that has won four WNBA titles.<\/p>\n

Despite Natalie\u2019s accomplishments, this came as a shock.\u00a0 It was not because I did not think she was talented enough for it to happen.\u00a0 After all, she became the 4th<\/sup> leading scorer in Lafayette history in a season shortened by 16 or more games this year.\u00a0 Based on her 2020-21 average, she would have ended up #2 had the Leopards played a full season.\u00a0 The same goes for points in a single season.\u00a0 She moved to #2 all-time in career scoring average.\u00a0 Natalie led the team in scoring all four years.<\/p>\n

She could, also, rebound!\u00a0 Boy, could she rebound \u2013 better than anyone at Lafayette and better than anyone in Patriot League<\/a> history.\u00a0 She finished with 1197 rebounds, led the team all four years, and became the first Lafayette player to score over 1,000 (1415) points and garner over 1,000 rebounds.<\/p>\n

And\u2026 yes, there is more \u2013 Natalie was named the PL Player of the Year and PL Defensive Player of the Year (for the second consecutive year).\u00a0 Only one other player in PL history has earned both awards in the same season.<\/p>\n

So, you ask, why am I so shocked?\u00a0 It is because she went to Lafayette.\u00a0 This is not to be a negative comment about Lafayette basketball.\u00a0 It is more about praising Lafayette\u2019s academic programs.\u00a0 Students and athletes go to Lafayette for the education \u2013 one of the best in the nation.\u00a0 Natalie would attest to that.\u00a0 She did not choose what we used to call \u201ccake\u201d courses \u2013 easy classes that athletes would take to lessen the challenge of playing college and navigating the rigors of college learning.\u00a0 Natalie majored in Chemical Engineering at Lafayette and excelled.\u00a0 I am fairly certain when she stepped on campus as a freshman back in 2017, her career plans centered<\/p>\n

around engineering.\u00a0 She came with the expectation that playing the game she loved would help her reach her vocational goals.<\/p>\n

Natalie\u2019s life is going to change in the next few months \u2013 she will graduate from Lafayette, leave her parents, Kenneth and Kathleen and siblings Anthony and Charlotte, and \u201chead west, young woman\u201d.\u00a0 Life and basketball have taken her from Philadelphia to Seattle via Lafayette College and Easton, PA.\u00a0 It is a \u201croad less traveled by\u201d (and in this case, never).<\/p>\n

I wish Natalie the very best.\u00a0 I have thoroughly enjoyed watching her development at Lafayette, as a player and as a person.\u00a0 And now, I will spend some time following her career in the WNBA.<\/p>\n

I am hoping to sit on my couch and scream, \u201cKoo-Kowl-Ski\u201d a few more times \u2013 for old times\u2019 sake!\u00a0<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

ABOVE THE EARS (SOME MUSINGS)<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Speaking of Patriot League basketball players, former Lehigh<\/a> great, CJ McCollum, continues to play at the highest level for the NBA\u2019s Portland Trailblazers<\/a>. He is averaging 23.4 points a game and scored 29 points this past Friday.\u00a0 He was the 10th<\/sup> pick in the 2013 NBA draft.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
      \n
    1. The 76ers<\/a>\u2019 Joel Embiid is back and advancing his place in the MVP category. This past Friday night, he scored 36 points and had 14 rebounds.\u00a0 The Sixers beat the LA Clippers<\/a>, who had won seven straight \u2013 106-103.\u00a0 When Embiid is healthy, he is as dominant as anyone in the league.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
        \n
      1. I know the NFL is still five months away, but the gambling houses are already taking bets on your team\u2019s over\/under win totals. In other words, they predict the win total and you bet on whether your choice will win more or less games.\u00a0 If the team wins the predicted total, you lose.\u00a0 The Eagles<\/a> and Giants<\/a> are picked to win seven games, the Washington Football Team<\/a> eight and the Dallas Cowboys<\/a> nine.\u00a0 Wanna bet?<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
          \n
        1. It\u2019s nice to see the high school baseball season is moving along rather smoothly so far. Playoffs have been scheduled and postponements have primarily been weather-related and NOT Covid-related.\u00a0 It\u2019s nice to be outdoors.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
            \n
          1. My buddy and co-announcer, John Leone, received the best and worst possible gift from his children recently \u2013 golf lessons! Oh, make no mistake, he needed them, but everyone from the professional to the hacker can attest to the fact that changing your golf swing can be catastrophic for awhile.\u00a0 John shot the highest score in the history of our golf league this past week.\u00a0 He had a lesson!<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

            The views expressed in this blog are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of RCN or any other agency, organization, employer or company. Read the title with emphasis, please!\u00a0 That\u2019s the way I would announce her name when Natalie would do something spectacular in a game.\u00a0 I…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":"Yoast SEO Relevanssi index exclude","inline_featured_image":false,"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"episode_type":"","audio_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","itunes_episode_number":"","itunes_title":"","itunes_season_number":"","itunes_episode_type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-84637","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-behind-the-mic"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nKoo-Kowl-Ski! - ATVN<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Koo-Kowl-Ski! - ATVN\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The views expressed in this blog are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of RCN or any other agency, organization, employer or company. 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