The Penn State Behrend women’s basketball team is again one of the youngest teams in the AMCC Conference this upcoming season. With only two seniors listed on the roster, the Behrend Lady Lions will ask many underclassmen to play big time minutes. However, this basketball team is in excellent hands from a coaching standpoint, as they return coaches Christine VanHook, Abbey Bartoszewicz and Robbie Byrd. In addition, Brianne Davis returns for her second season at PSB, while Nicole Boyer returns for her fourth and final season.

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Boyer has been with this program through many transitions and changes in personnel, but her love of the game has and will remain unphased. Boyer played on some outstanding high school teams at Blairsville Area HIgh School, where she won three letters and played in the PIAA state semifinals her senior season. Playing against high level competition in high school and in AAU prepared Boyer for collegiate level basketball.

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When speaking to her about high school basketball, Boyer had a lot of praise for her alma mater. “At Blairsville, I had the opportunity to be surrounded by so many great athletes who have transitioned to college careers of their own. Being surrounded by so many athletic people pushed me to get better and also pushed many of our teams to become better as well. Playing on some great high school teams helped not just myself, but also many of my teammates understand that the competition we were playing deep in the district and state playoffs would be similar to the level of play in college for many of us.”

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While she was prepared for collegiate athletics, Boyer admits that academics became increasingly difficult. “My advice for future college students is to not take any classes or any semester lightly. I have learned from experiences the importance of starting a college academic career on the right note, and I cannot stress enough how important this will be to a successful future,” she stated of her experience at Behrend.

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Boyer is a mechanical engineering major who spoke about the challenge of handling full days of classes, labs and meetings. “I have encountered some long days in my time as a student athlete,” Boyer said. I remind myself that basketball is important because it is an escape from a day full of higher level knowledge. Engineering is still important to me... because it will hopefully lead [me] to my passion of working in NASCAR someday.” Boyer grew up watching and participating in racing for as long as she could remember, hence her interest in working for NASCAR.

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Boyer’s parents, Mary Ann and Rick, are both big racing fans in a town that has a racing track and circuit. Rick has been racing go-karts on dirt and late-model vehicles for all of his life, and Nicole has been intrigued by the thrill that is auto racing. Throughout her life, Boyer has raced go-karts on dirt and asphalt tracks with the plan to begin racing late model vehicles in the near future. She has gained great experience and actually won a circuit racing championship in high school.

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When asking Boyer what racing has provided her, she was quick to list so many reasons for her love of the sport. She commented “I find it tough to put into words everything I love about auto racing. I love the strategy, sound, thrill and even the mechanics that go into racing. I have always been around the sport, and I hope my role in the sport only continues in the future.” She is unsure if her future in racing will be in mechanics or in stock car racing after her father’s impending retirement from the sport. One thing is certain, and that is Boyer is not giving up racing, no matter where life takes her after Behrend.

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Incredibly, Boyer was able to manage playing three high school sports (basketball, track and field and volleyball) while also spending countless weekends racing or assisting in races for her father. She has always been someone who manages her time well since her high school days. Because of her work ethic, McKamish, a mechanical construction company in Pittsburgh,  took notice of her skills.

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Boyer spent this past summer working for McKamish as a contracting intern while also racing and helping her father’s racing team in his circuit series races. It was a full summer of work, but she would not have had it any other way.

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Boyer believes this is a basketball team with more than enough talent to win the AMCC Conference this season. “We have a nice group coming back this season and we also added a great group of first year players who will help us tremendously. We have the perfect mix of experience and skill on our team to play into March this season,” she stated of the team. Boyer will look to win her first AMCC Championship in her final collegiate season, which would be a great way to end her collegiate basketball career and a positive sign for the future of Behrend women’s basketball.