Every athletic team has their standout player.

For the Pittsburgh Penguins, it is captain Sidney Crosby; for all of the NBA, it is LeBron James.

For the Point Park Pioneers, a few names come to mind: veterans that led both basketball teams to numerous victories over the years.

This year for the green and gold, each team has a name that stands out from the pack in an elevated manner. Not only are they lighting up the stat sheet, but they are also new to the corner of real and world.

The men’s latest headliner comes in the form of sophomore transfer Kameron Shockley.

The forward from Hiram College has started all 16 games for the Pioneers so far, averaging 10.8 points per game (173 points total) and 5.6 rebounds per game (89 rebounds total: 19 offensive, 70 defensive). Shockley also boasts a 44.7-percent field goal percentage and shoots 30.7-percent from beyond the arc.

Before coming to Point Park, Shockley missed a majority of his freshman season with the Terriers due to injury. Fortunately for the Pioneers, Shockley’s play does not seem to have been affected in the healing process.

On the opposite side of the court, the women’s team has a hard hitter of their own that made her debut this season: freshman guard Taylor Kirschner.

Like Shockley, Kirschner is a sharp shooter for the Pioneers. In her 16 games played this season, she is averaging 12 points per game (192 total points) and 3.3 rebounds per game (52 total: 13 offensive and 39 defensive).

Kirschner sports a 34.2-percent overall shooting percentage, is 29.6-percent from 3-point range and has an impressive 87-percent from the charity stripe.

On the national front, Kirschner is currently ranked 37th in all of the National Association for Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) DII women’s basketball athletes in average 3-pointers made per game with 2.5.

It is hard enough for a student to transfer schools or to go to college for the first time and adjust in the classroom, but it is even harder for a student-athlete to do so and adjust in both the classroom and the court.

Shockley and Kirschner are both forces to be reckoned with on the court and are, without a doubt, names that come up in opponents’ locker rooms while watching tape.

Both players have shown great potential in just their first years at Point Park, and both have made quite an impact with their teams.

Things are looking up for these formidable fresh faces, and I cannot wait to read all about their even more impressive returning seasons as they improve their skills.