Blasko aims to get the most joy out of last year on team
Graduate student Courtney Blasko is on her way to earn her MBA in International Business.
February 27, 2020
College is often known to be the fastest four years of your life. For Iona College softball player and graduate student Courtney Blasko, they have been the fastest four years of her life.
That’s right, four years. Blasko earned college credits in high school and they transferred over to Iona when she applied.
Blasko played more than softball before college. She also played basketball and soccer in her high school years. Blasko decided to stick with softball because it was the sport where she excelled and because her mother played softball in college as well.
Blasko is the only graduate student on the team. Being a graduate student doesn’t affect her role much in the team as the senior players on the team share leadership roles with her.
Through the years, Blasko has changed the way she approaches the game as well as her day-to-day life. If Blasko had the chance to speak to freshman self, she would say to be to more open in the early years.
“I would tell myself to say yes to everything,” Blasko said. “Say yes to going and getting dinner with the
seniors and just enjoy that time that you have with them because it goes by so quick and you don’t realize you’re going to lose all these girls that become, basically, your family.”
One of the most important things to Blasko is the relationships she’s made along the way during her time in softball. Her inspiration for softball is a former Gael, Tori Danner, who graduated in 2018.
“She was just an all-around great person, great teammate and a great player,” Blasko said. “You could go to her for anything and she was always there to give you guidance.”
Blasko’s goal for this season is to have fun while winning with her team.
“I’m just looking forward to getting on the diamond with my friends really,” Blasko said.
The Gaels performed well overall last season with a19-27 record, and they had a positive 12-8 record in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. Pitching was one of their strong points last season.
“Our pitching and our defense really hold us down,” Blasko said. “We can score one or two runs and still win games because we have pretty dominant pitching and whatnot.”
Blasko hopes to leave the legacy of enjoying the time the players have here.
“Enjoy your time, work hard and have fun,” Blasko said.
