Senior forward Shannon McGinnis has been a key part of the Geneseo women’s basketball program for the past four years. McGinnis started out at Gananda High School, where she was also a four-year starter. Her list of accolades at the high school level goes on and on, but most important ones are second team all-state, Most Valuable Player, Class C player of the year and the first player in Gananda history to reach 1,000 points.
Despite all these great achievements, McGinnis is quick to insist that she would be nowhere without her team.
“I can’t emphasize enough how important my teammates have been to me,” McGinnis said. “There are plenty of times when we have been down or maybe I miss some shots, but they are always there to push me harder and to be better.
A chain is only as strong as its weakest link, so we really buy into the next man up mentality in order for us to get the win.” In her time at Geneseo, McGinnis has reached the 1,000-point mark and amassed over 850 rebounds. In addition to being named SUNYAC player of the week more than a handful of times, she was also named SUNYAC and ECAC Rookie of the Year, second team all-SUNYAC as a sophomore and first team all-SUNYAC as a junior.
“To be in the SUNYAC finals the past two years and come up short have only made us want to work harder in practice and games to come out on top this year,” McGinnis said. “Our coaching staff has given us all the tools to be successful this year and it comes down to us every day, how we want to step out on the court and perform.”
Although many people would point to McGinnis as the star of this Knights team, she is adamant that certainly isn’t the case.
“We have different players come out and produce every night, and the special thing about this team is anyone can be a star on any given night,” McGinnis said. “That is what makes us so hard to compete against because we have many different options that can hurt teams in various ways.”
The Knights are still holding a commanding lead at the top of the conference, with an in-conference record of 10-1. If they can maintain this lead for a few more games, they will be able to host the conference tournament. The last time this happened was 2011, in which the Knights took home the championship.
“The crowd really gives us the extra boost of energy and confidence,” McGinnis said.”Being in a familiar setting allows us to get control of a game and hopefully come away with a win.” Geneseo looks to extend its eight-game winning streak on Friday Feb. 6 when the Knights travel to SUNY Brockport for a 7:30 p.m. game.