By Charlie Miller, Staff Writer
Mackenzie Szlosek ’25 on defense (By Luca España/The Gettysburgian)
As last year’s Centennial Conference champions, the women’s basketball team now finds themselves in a battle in the CC standings, deadlocked with the Dickinson Red Devils in third place.
Despite losing several key veterans from last year’s stellar team, however, leadership has not been an issue for Gettysburg, as Mackenzie Szlosek ’25 has provided key direction for the Bullets’ young squad. This has been especially important in a year that has some highs and a few tough losses, and it will be vital down the stretch.
Gettysburg’s landmark victory this season came against rival Johns Hopkins on Nov. 22. The Bullets dismantled the Blue Jays, who currently lead the Centennial Conference, 63-48 at home. The Bullets now stand at 9-4 in the conference, and 12-6 overall. They even fought Division I UMBC to the very end in a 79-77 loss on opening night in Baltimore.
In the fight to get to the top, Szlosek emphasized the importance of staying focused on their “goals and vision,” stating “as long as I show that I’m not giving up and continue to give great energy, others buy in too.” She strives to create a culture of resilience and hard work, and has learned how to do so through her previous experiences.
Szlosek attributed her leadership skills to several mentors she has come across in her career, “whether they be a coach or another player.”
She recalled that when she was a freshman in high school, she interacted with a senior who “was always incredibly patient with me and kind towards me, although she could have easily been frustrated, as I made a lot of mistakes being an inexperienced player.” Szlosek attempts to emulate the guidance that she once received within her current team.
Szlosek backs up her leadership in the locker room with her play on the court, as she is eighth in the conference, with 12.6 points per game. She is top five in the conference in field goal percentage and is among the leaders in rebounds and several other categories. However, she does not only lead through numbers; her work ethic emphasizes her leadership as well.
Despite the accolades and attention that Szlosek gets for her fantastic play on the court, she hopes that those who look up to her do so “because of what it takes to get there and the work I put in to achieve at a high level.”
Off the court, she is a biology major with a minor in business and wants to attend physician assistant school after graduation. In the summers leading up to graduate school, she plans on working as an EMT.
She also serves as the director of philanthropy for the Alpha Delta Pi sorority on campus. She organizes service opportunities and events and is currently planning their biggest philanthropy event of the year, Airbands, which Szlosek calls “a campus-wide lip syncing competition.”
In balancing athletics with her academic career and extracurricular activities, she has had “many late nights, early mornings, and a jam-packed day every day.” She looks to lead by example, and ensure that she establishes a routine and “makes sure that [she is] taking care of [herself] as much as possible.”
Szlosek remembers what it was like to be a first-year, as she was in that position just one year ago. She makes sure the first-years know that Gettysburg has “strong academics, and overall, it just feels like a great environment where [we] can be successful.”
Her leadership will help the young Bullets develop and gain valuable experience as they face the back half of the Centennial Conference schedule and tournament.
Catch Szlosek and the Bullets in action at Bream Gym on Saturday, Feb. 4 against Ursinus.
