From Danville to Chestnut Hill: Erin Houpt’s Journey to Boston College

By Nick Petralia

“Screech! Screech! Screech!” Rubber soles squeaked on the wooden, maroon-and-light-brown Danville High School basketball court as fourth grader Erin Houpt watched intently from the sideline, wanting to be out there herself. Her father, Ted Houpt, was in his first season as the Vikings varsity basketball coach and brought her to watch practice. It was here that Erin first began to fall in love with the game that would define her future.

“When I was really young, I started playing basketball, tennis, and other sports,” said Houpt, now a 22-year-old senior guard from Danville, Illinois. “But when my dad started coaching our boys’ high school team, I just knew basketball is what I wanted to do.”

Houpt would continue to attend practices with her father, not only to watch the action, but also to work on her own game.

 “I would go to their practices all the time and just watch,” Houpt said.  “Every single time afterwards, [my dad] would stay after and shoot for hours with me.”

Shooting has always been a big part of Erin’s game. In fact, it has always been a part of the Houpt family’s game. Erin’s father was a guard at Winthrop University who averaged over 17 points per game. Her brother, Sean, would go on to play basketball at Bradley, Florida Tech and William & Mary. 

“It’s definitely the main part of my game,” said Houpt, “My brother, my dad, and all my uncles, they were also shooters, so they made sure from the beginning that I had the right form shooting the right way, so it’s always been really important to me.”

Even holidays could not keep her away from the gym. 

“We go [to the gym] on Christmas, every holiday you can think of,” Houpt said. “That’s just when I knew how much I loved it.”

Her hard work paid off as she eventually became Danville High School’s all-time leading scorer with 2,208 career points, passing her friend Kendle Moore’s record with a 36-point performance.

“It was really awesome,” Houpt said. “[Moore] and I were pretty close, so it was pretty cool to break his record because he’s such a great player.”

Her high school accomplishments earned her a scholarship to Mercer University, where she made an immediate impact. Houpt was named the SoCon Freshman of the Year after having the highest three-point percentage in the conference. A year later, she would earn a spot on the SoCon All-Third Team after leading the nation in free-throw percentage, shooting 93.9 from the charity stripe.  

Despite her level of success in Macon, Georgia, roster and coaching changes caused the rising junior guard to look for a change of scenery.

“There were a lot of changes going on,” said Houpt. “We had, I think, like seven players leave and three of the assistants. It was time for a change.”

At the same time, her brother Sean also entered the transfer portal, looking to move on from Florida Tech after two seasons. During this time of uncertainty, the siblings leaned on each other.

“It was really cool to have a similar shared experience at the same time because we have different points of view, but also we’re going through the same thing,” Erin told Champaign, Illinois, CBS affiliate WCIA in 2023.

Houpt settled on San Diego State University as the next stop of her basketball career and made her mark as an Astec after missing a year because of an offseason knee injury. She helped SDSU win the Mountain West Tournament while setting the school’s all-time single-season three-point percentage record. Despite this success, Houpt yearned for a new opportunity and entered the portal once again, this time as a veteran of the process.

“When I went in the second time,” Houpt said. “Like I’ve been through the recruiting process now like three times, so obviously, like I know exactly what I’m looking for.”

And for her, that was Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. Home of the Boston College Eagles.

“I connected really well with the coaches,” said Houpt. “I know there is a lot of room for opportunities… just the intensity of the program. I love that we’re really competitive every day.”

Now a long way from Danville, the senior guard is poised to make her mark once again, and her new coach is confident she will. 

“She’s a fierce competitor with a pure shooting touch,” BC head coach Joanna Bernabei-McNamee said to BCEagles.com. “Erin plays with a toughness and energy that fits perfectly with our culture.. We can’t wait to see the impact she’ll have on our program.”