Hempfield grad Allison Podkul making most of final season at Grove City

The abbreviation AP can stand for many things. But at Grove City College, and more specifically on the women’s basketball team, AP stands for Allison Podkul.

Podkul, a 2018 Hempfield grad, is in the midst of putting the finishing touches on a memorable college career.

“AP is a competitor, she wants to win,” Grove City coach Chelle Fuss said. “She is focused and brings everyone around her to a high level by her play.

“She is a joy to coach because you can always count on her to bring her best and to have a high desire to succeed. She is someone you want to go to battle with, and I am so happy that I get to coach her.”

Podkul, a 5-foot-8 forward, has always brought her “A-game” when she has stepped on the hardwood. Podkul hit the floor her freshman year, earning playing in 29 games while getting the starting nod for four of them. The transition from high school to college was dramatic, but she was ready for the challenge.

“It was definitely a switch,” said Podkul, who will continue her education for optometry at Salus University. “High school is little slower and college is a little faster.”

Grove City was the perfect fit for Podkul coming out of high school. She admits she was looking at other Presidents’ Athletic Conference schools but wanted to be a Wolverine.

“I love the atmosphere at Grove City,” Podkul said. “It’s the relationships and just watching a game and seeing how the team interacted with each other and supported each other is really what drew me in.”

Undersized for the forward position, Podkul made up for it with her hustle.

“While she has been here, we have asked her to play a different role and being an undersized post player, she embraced it from Day 1,” Fuss said. “She has grit and passion that is unmatched. She has been an energy leader for us from late in her freshman year on.”

Nothing demonstrated Podkul’s hustle and passion more than the three-point play she pulled off in a come-from- behind win over rival Bethany; it was vintage “AP.”

“Definitely some games stick out, and in the heat of the moment, the Bethany game will be in there,” Podkul said.

Podkul, a two-year letterwinner, is leaving it all out on the floor in her final year of college basketball. She’s turned in six double-double performances and leads the PAC in field-goal percentage (.520). She also ranks seventh in scoring, averaging 12 points per game.

“She has developed into a consistent scorer and a tenacious rebounder,” Fuss said. “She shows up every day ready to work and because of that she has improved every year and every game. She is ready for the playoffs, and she is determined to take this team far.”

A team-first player, Podkul is just as concerned with guiding the younger players who will carry the torch forward once she graduates. She found herself in a leadership role that she embraced.

“Honestly, having such a big class leave and a big class coming, it was important to me to keep that culture going,” Podkul said.

Podkul’s leadership hasn’t gone unnoticed.

“This year, she has grown as a leader with 11 freshman and a total of 14 new people to the program,” Fuss said. “She taught them our standards and held them accountable. She is revered by this group of ladies, and it is well deserved.”