{"id":235,"date":"2025-10-14T23:50:42","date_gmt":"2025-10-15T03:50:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/?p=235"},"modified":"2025-11-03T11:47:08","modified_gmt":"2025-11-03T16:47:08","slug":"mcardle-named-newmac-student-athlete-of-the-year","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/magazine\/mcardle-named-newmac-student-athlete-of-the-year\/","title":{"rendered":"McArdle named NEWMAC student-athlete of the year"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Kekoa McArdle stands tall as NEWMAC student-athlete of the year<\/h1>\n\n\n\n

Standing at a rugged 6-foot-8 with a signature headband to keep his wavy black hair in check, Kekoa McArdle \u201925 has never been shy about making his presence known on the basketball court. The center\/forward, a bruising rebounder with a passel of get-out-of-my-way power moves inside the paint, scored over 1,000 career points and helped lead Clark to the New England Women\u2019s and Men\u2019s Athletic Conference championship in his senior year. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Kekoa<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

This spring, NEWMAC named McArdle as one of four athletes as Student-Athlete of the Year. He was the only basketball player from the conference\u2019s 12 schools chosen for the award, which is based on academic achievement, athletic excellence, and service and leadership. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

 \u201cKekoa truly set the standard for what it means to be a student-athlete, first and foremost in the classroom,\u201d said men\u2019s basketball head coach\u202fTyler Simms. \u201cOn the court, he led and mentored our younger forwards, which will continue to help our program for years to come.\u201d\u202f <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trish Cronin, director of athletics and recreation, agreed. \u201cKekoa\u2019s relentless work ethic and humility have made a lasting impact on our department, and this recognition by the NEWMAC is a testament to the kind of student-athlete and person he is.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

McArdle, a Pittsfield, Massachusetts, native with a degree in psychology and a minor in management, transferred to Clark after playing at the University of Rochester in his first year. He was essential to the team\u2019s year-to-year improvement over the past three seasons, culminating in a dominant 80\u201365 victory over WPI to take the NEWMAC title and earn Clark men\u2019s basketball its first NCAA tournament berth since 2010.   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

He describes his teammates as a \u201csecond family.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019d walk to classes together, hang out together,\u201d he says. \u201cEven in practices when things could get a little gritty and we\u2019d go at it on the court, all that would get dropped when practice was over. At the end of the day, we were all friends.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

And he\u2019s not done playing. McArdle competed in several summer leagues across the state and has done intensive physical training to increase his chances of playing professionally overseas. He\u2019s signed with an agency to pursue playing opportunities, including one in Britain, where he\u2019s also interested in studying for a master\u2019s degree. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

His choice to major in psychology at Clark was deliberate. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe idea of dealing with how the mind works\u2014the different paths you can take, and the different ways people think and operate\u2014really grabbed me,\u201d he says. \u201cAll my professors are so invested, and they pull everything into their teaching.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

McArdle and Clark teammate Chris Clarke \u201927, with guidance from team mentor Nadia Ward, director of the Mosakowski Institute for Public Enterprise, last year created a campus group where students could gather to meet new friends and have conversations about what\u2019s going on in their lives\u2014\u201cthe good and the bad,\u201d McArdle says. The goal of the meetings, he notes, is to foster an open and welcoming forum for students to connect with one another on their terms.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As he considers his next moves, on and off the court, McArdle is eyeing a possible career as a sports psychologist, noting that many pro sports teams retain a therapist for their players. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

For now, he carries his love for the game onto the courts of Massachusetts, and perhaps, one day, he\u2019ll be posting up against professional players in a European league. But wherever McArdle winds up, he insists, \u201cClark will always be home.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n