The Western New England University women’s basketball program has been watching Shaina Cooney since she was in middle school through her AAU program
Starting, next season, the Golden Bears will have their player as Cooney committed to play for the Division III program, starting in the 2021-22 season.
That whole time, she found the prospect of attending there intriguing, especially since it provided her with something she always wanted: a female coach.
“I felt like (Western New England coach Nicole Chaszar) was going to be more than my coach,” Cooney said. “She would be able to help me with more than just basketball. She’d be able to help me socially, emotionally and academically.”

Chaszar is in her 16th season has the Golden Bears’ coach and she entered this season with a .605 winning percentage. The team has won 66 percent of their conferences during her tenure. The Golden Bears have earned 14 straight consecutive postseason berths and have been in every Commonwealth Coast Tournament since 2008.
Through the last five of those seasons, Chaszar has been watching Cooney develop.
“It’s very rewarding because it shows they truly care about you and want to see you develop as a player,” Cooney said. “It’s not just a one-time thing. They have seen your worst games and best games. They have watched you develop and see your potential for the future.”
The Golden Bears are getting a player that always tries to give 110 percent, a player who is strong under the basket and can get through double teams, like she had to do for most of the 2021-COVID-19-shortened season.
Valley Central coach Bill Michella said Cooney is probably the best offensive player for the Orange County Interscholastic Athletic Association.
He said she has fantastic interior passing skills and a high basketball IQ, and in the seven games the Vikings played, she averaged just under 12 rebounds per game.
“Shaina’s drive will help her succeed,” Michella said. “She’s just a competitor and she really wants to win.”
By her own admission, she’s hard on herself.
“I definitely think that no matter how far I get, I’ll always be my biggest critic and think I have to improve,” Cooney said. “Whether it’s shooting, boxing out, or something as simple as making a different pass. I’ll always think I need to develop to become the player I’ve always dreamed of being.”
She didn’t get the senior season she had dreamed of getting as the girls’ basketball season was confined to seven games in gymnasiums with no spectators.
Still, she was glad to get that last season in.
“It was different,” Cooney said. “It was very peculiar to play against everyone with a mask on. It was good to be able to have that senior season and have that last hurrah and play with the girls to give it one last go.”
She’ll graduate at the end of June and from there, eyes will be on the future as she heads to Western New England University, where she will, in addition to playing basketball, will major in health sciences with an eye toward physical or occupational therapy.
“I’ll be able to learn how to make decisions for myself and give me that balance of basketball, a social life and academics,” Cooney said. “I want to be able to have a foundation that I can take care of myself and not rely on basketball. I’ll know that there are other things about me that can get me through a career and help me have a prosperous life.”