Player Profile: Brandi Swinton
One in a series of articles on Central Penn basketball players this season.
A look at Brandi Swinton: Young star with the Lady Knights
By Kevon Davis
Knightly News Reporter
kevon.davis@mymail.centralpenn.edu
Brandi Swinton is a star forward for the Central Penn women’s basketball team.
Let’s take a closer look at this rising star.
Swinton grew up in Baltimore, and she was never into basketball when she was young. Instead, she was involved in cheer and stuck to that as a hobby.
When Swinton was in sixth grade, her coach saw Swinton’s height and told her she should play basketball.
Photo by Kevon Davis
“I was not the best, because I was new to the game, but over time, with more practice, I became dominant and got a lot better,” Swinton told The Knightly News. “Just proving that with practice, you can continue to grow your game to the next level.”
Greatest achievement
She said her greatest achievement was this last season: going to the United States Collegiate Athletic Association Small College National Championship and competing to win it all. She said going out of state and staying somewhere new to compete was a lot of fun. Many good teams competed at the championship level, which allowed Swinton to evaluate her experience as a basketball player.
Swinton has a very close bond with her teammates. They all like to have fun, and to push and to motivate one another at practice. She hopes they can make it to the championship this year, so the bond with her teammates can grow.
Has faced injuries
One struggle Swinton has faced is injuries. She’s had shin splints when she runs, and she feels like she doesn’t ice as much as she is supposed in an effort to help prevent the injury. She said that sometimes, the pain is so bad she has to sit out at practice. She’s hoping this will get better this season.
Swinton said her coach from travel basketball inspired her to keep pushing and to keep working hard to be where she wants to be. He inspired her to reach out to different college coaches in her quest to play college basketball and was like a father figure to her while her dad was deployed to Kuwait. He made sure she was safe and that she was taken care of while her father was gone.
Photo courtesy Central Penn College Athletics
Up ahead
Her plans for the future don’t include basketball, but she would love the chance to play overseas and make a lot of money from it. She plans on finishing college and graduating with her degree.
To check out Swinton and the Lady Knights this season, visit https://www.centralpennknights.com/landing/index.
Comment or story idea? Contact KnightlyEditors@CentralPenn.Edu.
Edited by media-club co-adviser and blog editor Professor Michael Lear-Olimpi.
