Dynamic Dynamo: Panepinto was a 3-sport star at Belle Vernon
Submitted photo
Brooke Panepinto during her playing days at Belle Vernon.
Submitted photo
Brooke Panepinto continued her career at Robert Morris University.
Dynamite sometimes comes in small package, case in point former Belle Vernon standout Brooke Panepinto.
She started her road in athletics at a young age.
鈥淚 played T-Ball when I was really little,鈥� Panepinto stated. 鈥淭hen when I six, or 6陆 actually, I went and played travel softball for the under-12 Renegades. I was always really small, so I was the smallest one on the team and I was really young.鈥�
A 5-foot-1 inch dynamo, Panepinto was a four-year letter winner at Belle Vernon in soccer, basketball and softball.
鈥淚 didn鈥檛 start playing soccer until high school,鈥� said Panepinto. 鈥淢y friends said you are fast, come play soccer with us and I did.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 know if I had played soccer the same time I started playing softball, that would have been a tossup because I really liked soccer, but I knew when I was younger that I wanted to play Division I softball. That蘑菇视频 kind of what my goal was.鈥�
Panepinto excelled in soccer, scoring 34 career goals for the Lady Leopards, mostly .500 clubs. She earned all-section honors in soccer in her senior season.
鈥淲e were decent in soccer,鈥� Panepinto said. 鈥淏ut, I don鈥檛 remember if we won our section or if we made the playoffs, but when I was like a senior we had girls coming in that had actually played travel soccer and they started to get better and better.鈥�
Panepinto was a defensive spark plug on competitive Belle Vernon basketball teams. She earned the 2003 Gatorade Will to Win Award in basketball.
鈥淲e all played together since middle school and were very good friends,鈥� Panepinto stated. 鈥淚 played basketball for fun.鈥�
The Belle Vernon softball was a .500 club or a little above .500 during Panepinto蘑菇视频 time for the Lady Leps.
鈥淚 was the only girl on our softball team who went on to play in college,鈥� said Panepinto. 鈥淲e won our section, but didn鈥檛 even come close to going to the WPIAL finals. We never went past the first round of the playoffs, when we got that far.
鈥淪oftball really blew up in our area and it蘑菇视频 nice to see because I give lessons to a lot of the girls. It蘑菇视频 nice because I get to pass on my knowledge of the sport.鈥�
Panepinto said she benefited from solid coaching.
鈥淎ll my coaches, they were all good guys,鈥� said Panepinto. 鈥淚 always had male coaches, sometimes the assistants would be female. Heather Ferrari Milkent, who went to Belle Vernon and played Division I softball, was who I looked up to when I was younger. She actually lives down the road from where I live today.
鈥淪he was actually one of the assistant coaches for coach Tom Rodriquez for, I think, it was just one season, but I was so excited to have her. Someone you can actually look up to that played the sport.
鈥淭he people who made huge impacts on me were my travel ball coaches like Harry Rutherford. Then, I went to a lot of camps and Cal U coach Rick Bertagnolli at his camp, I learned a lot from him. I tried to pick up knowledge from everybody.鈥�
The softball numbers for Panepinto at Belle Vernon were impressive. She earned all-section honors in softball in all four years at Belle Vernon and was 2004 Valley Independent Player of the Year, batting .522 with 18 RBI and committing only three errors in 85 chances. Panepinto earned Pittsburgh Post-Gazette All-Star recognition in all four seasons.
鈥淚鈥檓 proud because I worked so hard to get to where I was,鈥� Panepinto offered. 鈥淪oftball gave me so much on and off the field. Now, I鈥檓 able to give back the knowledge to the girls I coach. I coach two rec teams and I coach a travel ball team.鈥�
Panepinto didn鈥檛 want to go to college too far from home after graduating from Belle Vernon.
鈥淚 really liked Robert Morris coach Craig Coleman. I took three recruiting visits, 鈥� said Panepinto. 鈥淚 decided to go to Robert Morris.鈥�
Panepinto had a great career at RMU with career numbers: .345 batting average, 85 RBI, 21 home runs, and 32 stolen bases. She played in the outfield and was a First-Team All-NEC selection for the Colonials.
Panepinto graduated magna cum laude with a degree in marketing in 2009. She earned her MBA at Robert Morris.
鈥淚t was a great decision to go to Robert Morris,鈥� said Panepinto. 鈥淔amily is really important and I didn鈥檛 want to go too far away. 鈥�
Panepinto played four seasons of professional softball in Italy from 2009-12.
鈥淭hese people found me and reached out to my coach because my last name is Panepinto,鈥� explained Panepinto. 鈥淭hey asked me if I wanted to come play pro over here? When I studied abroad, I went and checked it out. They were nice to me and (told me) we鈥檙e going to help you get your Italian citizenship, so I have that.
鈥淚 went over after I graduated from college and there were more fans in Italy than at my college games. We had the European Cup my first year there and that was huge. It was the greatest experience ever.鈥�
Panepinto has worked at AT&T Sportsnet for nine years as Traffic Coordinator.
Still residing in Belle Vernon, Panepinto and her husband Nakoma have been married since 2018. They have two children, a son Nicolo and a daughter Ilaria.
Panepinto is pleased with what she has accomplished as she looked back on her career.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 have any regrets about softball,鈥� said Panepinto. 鈥淚 got to play Division I softball and I got to play in Italy, so I don鈥檛 have any regrets.鈥�