Off three consecutive NCAA tournament appearances, Coach Pinkos heads into her 19th season as Head Coach in 2024-25. SNHU has won 60 games over the past three seasons, including a 17-11 mark (15-7 NE10) last season in which the Penmen advanced to the NCAA tournament, falling to Jefferson in a 91-89 overtime thriller.
Adrianna Timberlake was named the 2023-24 Northeast-10 Player of the Year for the second consecutive season, was named a WBCA All-American, and First-Team D2CCA East Region. She finished her career with 1,634 points (3rd in program history) and 217 made three-point field goals (most in program history). Senior Jess Knight was named to the Northeast-10 Second-Team-All Conference, and freshman Abby Wager was named to the All-Rookie Team.
Timberlake was named the Northeast-10 Player of the Year in 22-23, and along with Knight, was named NE10 First-Team All-Conference on a squad that went 22-8 (15-5 NE10), advancing to the second round of the NCAA tournament for the first time. Timberlake and Knight were also key members of the 2021-22 Penmen squad which went 21-7 (15-4 NE10) and earned the top seed in both the Northeast-10 Tournament and NCAA East Regional after winning the NE10 Regular Season Championship. Coach Pinkos was named the Northeast-10 Coach of the Year.
2021-22 top performers Gyanna Russell and Meg Knollmeyer were both named Northeast-10 First-Team All-Conference, and Russell surpassed 1,000 points for her career. Knollmeyer, a transfer to SNHU, eclipsed 1,000 rebounds for her career. The win over American International College on November 28, 2021, was her 200th career victory.
The Penmen have now recorded six consecutive winning seasons, advancing to the Northeast-10 Championship each season under Coach Pinkos.
The 2017-18, and 2018-19 squads went a combined 33-25 and were led by Kylie Lorenzen, a two-time Northeast-10 First-Team All-Conference selection. Lorenzen became the first Penmen player to earn the recognition. She was also the first SNHU player to be named Northeast-10 Rookie of the Year in 2016. Lorenzen finished her career as the all-time leading scorer (1,798 points) and all-time leading rebounder (932) for the Penmen.
The 2012-13 season saw Pinkos win her 100th career game against Southern Connecticut State University. Sloane Sorrell became the first two-time Northeast-10 All-Conference selection for the Penmen as she garnered Third Team honors.
In 2011-12, the Penmen posted a 19-10 mark, the program's best season since 1990-91. SNHU was ranked regionally and also garnered votes in the WBCA Division II Top 25. Senior Christine Duffy led all three NCAA divisions in assists per game, while Duffy and Sloane Sorrell were each named Northeast-10 All-Conference.
In her first 10 seasons, Pinkos, a native of Allenstown, N.H., led the Penmen to six Northeast-10 Tournament appearances, the first six in the history of the program. SNHU appeared in five straight NE-10 Tournaments from 2008-12 and advanced to the quarterfinals in 2009, 2011, and 2012.
Under Pinkos' tutelage, the Penmen have been one of the nation's top teams academically, earning spots on the WBCA Division II Academic Top 25. SNHU women's basketball also earned the Northeast-10 Team Academic Excellence Award in 2012-13 and 2014-15. Two members of the 2023-24 squad (Knight and Meghan Gordon) were recognized as NE10 Academic All-Conference.
The program is also active in the community, including hosting an annual Pink Day to recognize those who have fought and are fighting breast cancer.
Pinkos began her coaching career at her alma mater, the University of New Hampshire, and also served as an assistant at Boston College and Providence College, before joining the coaching staff at Northeastern in 1996. She helped Providence to a share of the Big East 7 title in 1996 and owns over 16 years of Division 1 coaching experience.
Recognized as one of the nation's top assistant coaches by Women's Basketball Journal in 2000, she helped guide Northeastern to an America East title and the program's first NCAA Tournament appearance in 1999.
Pinkos was a four-year member of the women's basketball team at UNH and served as a team captain in her junior and senior years. She collected first-team all-conference honors as a senior after guiding the Wildcats to a 19-win season and still ranks high among the program's all-time leaders in career assists. She went on to play professionally in Germany after earning her bachelor's degree in leisure management and tourism.
Pinkos was an all-state performer at Pembroke Academy and participated in the New Hampshire/Vermont Alhambra All-Star game following her senior year. She was inducted on to the Pembroke Academy Wall of Fame in the summer of 2006.
