Atlanta, GA — The Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) announced the 2020 All-America team Thursday and State University of New York at New Paltz senior forward Maddie Van Pelt joined just 30 others in the country to earn a WBCA All-America Honorable Mention nod. Additionally, Van Pelt also earned a spot on D3Hoops.com All-East Region Second-Team to add to an already decorated resume.
 
Van Pelt joins elite company in Hawks program history to earn WBCA All-America honors, which includes former teammates Kit Small ('16), Rachel Simon ('19) and Lindsay Bettke ('19). The former and the latter are both top-3 on the team's all-time scoring list, while Simon broke her own single season points mark in her two seasons with the team.
 
"Being in a category with Kit Small, Lindsay Bettke and Rachel Simon makes me speechless," Van Pelt said. "All three of these players have impacted New Paltz in so many ways. Not only knowing them as players, but actually playing alongside them has taught me and showed me the work that needs to be put in to not only be a good player, but a great one. The Principle of NPWBB is built on toughness and through their leadership along with other alumni, has taught me the importance of that. In the end they left me with the skills to have the opportunity to be great." 
 
Van Pelt had a stand-out season for SUNY New Paltz, putting up career numbers in points (369), points per game (12.7), rebounds (197), assists (36) and steals (70), while finishing second in both points and rebounds on the team. She totaled four double-digit point and rebound performances on the year, while scoring 20-plus in four games. Always a skilled athlete, Van Pelt took her game to another level with her ability to knock down shots from the perimeter, as she shot about 32 percent on the season after making 27-of-85 from 3-point range, something she and head coach Jamie Seward spoke about entering the year.
 
"I don't know that I've ever coached a player more deserving of all of the recognition she has received," Seward said. "She earned every bit of it through hard work and a competitive mindset that is very unique. While Maddie would rank right at the top if not the very top in terms of competitiveness, she also posses a totally unique quality that I value and appreciate beyond words. Maddie is so humble and she has this genuine humility about her that she doesn't think she is nearly as good as she is. Nevertheless, while she doesn't think she is as good as whoever she may be competing against, she still believes in her heart of hearts that she is supposed to beat that more talented opponent. I can totally relate to that mindset because I had a similar attitude when I played, and I've always wanted to have players and ultimately a team who thought that way. Maddie was just an extreme example of that way of thinking. Therefore, she was so instrumental to the development of our team's collective mindset this season. That and the abnormal level of accountability she has always demonstrated, which is a credit to her parents and the way she was raised, are what I'm going to miss the most. In fact, I told her mother at senior day that if I ever had a daughter I'm giving her to the Van Pelt's to raise. Maddie never had to be convinced that she made a mistake, and that allows you to skip a couple of steps as a coach, and go right to fixing the problem, which again is so abnormal."  
Van Pelt had one of her best performances in the State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) Championship game against SUNY Cortland. The Montgomery, NY native posted a career-high 25 points with 13 rebounds to carry the Hawks to their second-straight conference title en route to SUNYAC Tournament MVP honors. She was later named a First-Team All-SUNYAC recipient, solidifying her spot as one of the best in the SUNYAC and for that matter, in the country. Additionally, she was one of 18 seniors in the nation to be invited to play in the second annual WBCA Beyond Sports Senior All-Star Game.
 
One of the things Van Pelt mentioned she will miss most about the season is after every practice and after every game, including the SUNYAC finals, chanting, "Champions on three...one, two, three... CHAMPIONS." She ultimately leaves the program earning that moniker, helping the team to three SUNYAC championships, back-to-back 25-win seasons and 87 overall wins — the most in a four-year span in program history.
 
"This last year has meant more to me than any athletic year in my career," Van Pelt said. "My goal for both seasons [volleyball and basketball] was to not regret anything. I didn't want to look back on my career and say, 'man I wish I did this or I wish I did that.' I can say that I am very thankful and grateful when I look back on my career, especially in my final seasons as a student athlete. The teammates that I got to play with over the years are unforgettable, especially Marion [Dietz], Phil [Teape] and Paige [Niemeyer]. They are just great people and I am really going to miss being around them and the competitive environment they created. Us four have gone through so much and I am so thankful for the way we played in our last season as Hawks."
 
To view full WBCA All-America team, click here.
 
To view the full D3Hoops.com All-East Region team, click here.