Breindel credits support, second chance, for successful high school career
The name “Charlie Breindel” is one that Crusader basketball fans have heard mentioned frequently over the past three years, especially this season as the senior captain helped lead the ECC squad all the way to the PIAA 1A Western Final. Ask Breindel though, and he is quick to deflect any credit for his success to his teammates, coaches, and family.
Earlier this week, it was announced that Breindel received yet another accolade for his efforts during the season. He was one of 18 players to earn allstate honors in Class A, being named to the third team.
While honored to receive the recognition, Breindel referred to the all-state honors as a team award rather than an individual accomplishment.
“My teammates deserve credit too, because without them, none of this would have been possible,” Breindel said.
Breindel expressed the hope that his experience will serve as inspiration for younger players as they move through the ranks of the St. Marys Cavalier and Elk County Catholic Crusader basketball programs.
“I think my experience will be able to help kids that come through get to experience what it’s like, or hopefully try to work as hard as I did to get to that next level to get to play in a Final Four game, or want to play in a Final Four game,” Breindel said. “I think they got to experience that energy and see how much fun we were having this year. That obviously didn’t come easy. It came with the hard work from the offseason and such.”
Making the experience all the more special for Breindel was the fact that his basketball career nearly ended before it even really had a chance to begin.
When he was in sixth grade, Breindel was sitting around a fire with friends one night when something flew out and hit him in the head. He was life flighted to Pittsburgh and had to undergo brain surgery.
“I was in the hospital for two weeks, and then I had rehab and they told me I wasn’t going to be able to play basketball for at least a year. I wasn’t able to run for a couple months, which was even worse,” Breindel said. “That whole year, I had people talking to me and telling me, ‘You’ll get back.’ I can say there were a lot of tears shed, not just because of the accident, but more so because I didn’t know if I’d get that opportunity to play basketball. I think so many people take it for granted how much something can mean to someone.”
Breindel credited sixth grade Cavalier coach Steve Straub for letting him stay involved with the team even though he was unable to actually play. Breindel was able to sit on the sideline during games and attend practices.
“I couldn’t miss out,” Breindel said. “They let me shoot during Cav Day, which was pretty cool. All those coaches came together, just like the community did. They knew how much the game meant to me, and they wanted to be a part of getting me back to that game, finding the love and passion that I had before the accident. They deserve a ton of credit. I don’t know if they know how much that meant to me and my family to be able to get back to that level.”
Breindel began playing Cavalier basketball in the third grade. The second oldest of four children of Todd and Anne Breindel of St. Marys, Charlie has an older brother, Alex; a younger sister, Gracee; and a younger brother, Jack. He credited his father and older brother with being influential in inspiring his own love for the game.
“My dad played basketball growing up, and my older brother really set the path of what’s expected,” Breindel said.
While his father taught Breindel and his siblings about the hard work that must go into having a successful basketball career, Breindel shared that an experience his brother had while playing Cavalier basketball in seventh grade has always stuck out to him.
“In seventh grade, he (Alex) didn’t start,” Breindel said. “He came home one day and told my dad, ‘That’s the last time I don’t start.’ He started the rest of the way up. When I got to hear that story and got to watch how hard my brother worked to be the type of player that he was, it really showed me that it does take a lot of hard work. It was kind of cool knowing what it takes to get there and having someone like those two to mentor me through it.”
Reflecting on his lifelong interest in basketball, Breindel credited his participation in Little Dribblers with providing the spark that made him want to be a Crusader basketball player. During Little Dribblers, members of the Elk County Catholic High School varsity boys’ basketball team work with younger players during a series of Saturday sessions and then invite those players to show off their skills during halftime of a junior varsity game. Breindel recalled looking up to players such as Nate DaCanal, Brandon Schlimm, and Mitchell Struble during his time in Little Dribblers.
“Getting to be mentored by those guys was definitely a big turning point,” Breindel said.
Breindel achieved his goal of playing on the Crusader varsity squad in his sophomore year and was a member of the team for three seasons. The experience is something that he stressed could not be taken for granted.
“Coach uses the line, ‘There’s givers and there’s takers in this world,’ and I really took it to heart. How can you be a better teammate? You see different basketball programs and there’s a lot of groups that take for granted what they’re given. We’ve always been taught not to take for granted what we have and to be a team player. That’s something I will take with me the rest of the way in life in general,” Breindel said.
To say their 20212022 campaign was a successful one for Breindel and his teammates would be an understatement. The Crusaders put on a lengthy postseason run, making it all the way to the PIAA Class 1A Western Final – something that had only been done four times previously during ECC boys’ basketball head coach Aaron Straub’s four decades at the helm of the program.
Breindel shared that he and his teammates put in a lot of work in the offseason to prepare for this year in hopes of getting the best out of the team that could.
“I think we got that, especially out of the sophomores and juniors that really stepped up this year,” Breindel said.
However, Breindel admitted that making it as far as the Western Final was a goal that he was uncertain could be achieved this season.
“To be honest, I didn’t know if that was possible,” Breindel said. “My dad was actually in the Western Final, so I got to see all the papers and everything. He kind of hyped me up about it. I think this year I knew before the season that we had a chance to go far. I think everyone bought in, including the coaches.” they possibly
Looking back on the season, Breindel cited some of the team’s losses as being games that stuck out to him, as well as when the Crusaders defeated Ridgway in double overtime to give Straub his 900th victory coaching the boys’ basketball team. However, he noted that his favorite games were the ones from the team’s playoff run.
“That run was just so fun to be a part of,” Breindel said.
After winning the District 9 Class A boys’ title, the Crusaders defeated District 7 fifth place team Rochester in the first round of the PIAA 1A playoffs 49-47. In the second round, the Crusaders won 66-53 over District 10 champion Farrell. Breindel led all scorers with 28 points in the game.
Moving on to the quarterfinals, ECC defeated District 7 runner-up Union 52-45 in overtime to reach the Western Final. Breindel once again led all scorers, this time with 24 points.
In the Western Final
against eventual state champion Bishop Canevin, the District 7 champion, the Crusaders came up short 4721, but Breindel still led all scorers with 13 points.
Throughout the postseason run, Straub would often cite Breindel’s leadership role with the team during his postgame comments, and Breindel explained that he used his own experience with his sixth grade season to try to convey to his teammates that there are no guarantees in the sport.
“Tomorrow is not guaranteed. Your next game is not guaranteed, We experienced that with the COVID year,” Breindel said. “I think the message going into every game was you might as well leave it all out on the floor because tomorrow is not guaranteed.”
Set to graduate from ECC later this month, Breindel plans to attend college and pursue a degree in environmental science. He is also hoping to continue his basketball career at the next level.
Looking further into the future, Breindel did not rule out a potential switch to coaching.
“I think Coach Straub set a high standard. It’s something I don’t know if I’ll be able to accomplish or get anywhere close to, but that’s for sure a goal is to coach,” Breindel said. “Having Coach Straub as a coach, he shows the standard, and I think he’s a great example.”
Whatever the future holds, Breindel credited his family, friends, teammates, and coaches for helping him achieve the success that he has so far, as well as for their continued support as he moves onto the next level of his academic and athletic careers.