School: Abington
Volleyball, Basketball, Lacrosse
Favorite athlete: “I don’t have a favorite athlete because I don’t watch sports. I just enjoy playing them.”
Favorite team: “Whatever college I attend this fall will be my favorite collegiate team.”
Favorite memory competing in sports: “When I got my 100th three-pointer. It was my favorite moment because I had no idea what was going on, and it was a pleasant surprise.”
Most embarrassing/funniest thing that has happened while competing in sports: “When I was a freshman, I didn’t really get much time in games. One game my coach put me in with about three minutes left to go. I was really nervous, and (the other team’s) fans were going crazy. They started shouting, ‘Three-two-one’ as I was taking the ball up the court. As I heard them count down, I thought there was one second left, and I launched the ball from halfcourt when there was still a whole minute left!”
Music on iPod: John Mayer, Jack Johnson, Kanye, Missy, Justin Timberlake, Britney Spears
Future plans: “Go to college, travel, get married and have lots and lots of children.”
Words to live by: “Don’t take anything too seriously.”
One goal before turning 30: “Be very successful and visit Ireland.”
One thing people don’t know about me: “I hate to lose…at anything.”
Jen Kelly, according to her basketball coach, is such a fierce competitor she would dive on the floor ‘even if there was (broken) glass there.’
“All she wants to do is win,” Abington basketball coach Dan Marsh said of his senior guard. “Even when we do little games in warm-up, Jen always wants to win.
“She’s very, very competitive, and she’ll do whatever it takes. That’s what stands out about her for me. She’s so competitive, and she’s such a hard worker.”
It’s not a coincidence that Kelly is an integral part of three successful sports’ programs.
In the fall, she was the defensive libero for a volleyball team that advanced to the district tournament for the first time in school history while earning a school best 10 wins. This spring, she will be a three-year starter on defense for the Ghosts’ successful lacrosse team.
Right now, Kelly is leaving her mark on the basketball court where she recently buried the 100th three-point basket of a superb three-year varsity career.
“She’s really worked hard on her shot,” Marsh said. “She really became a good shooter out of hard work.”
Very hard work - both on and off the court.
“We have this tape called ‘Swish,’” she said. “I didn’t like watching it, but my dad watched it and made notes on it and just taught me.
“I would go out and shoot, but I would just do it until I didn’t want to do it anymore. If I’m making myself do something, then I’m not going to get better.”
For years, Kelly worked at developing her shot.
“I always had to tweak it a little bit,” she said. “Since I was younger, I always felt like I was working on my shot. My dad (Phil Kelly) was always helping me with it, saying, ‘No, you have to keep your elbow in,’ and I had to change it all the time.
“I remember saying to him, “When can I just shoot the ball and be fine?’ He said, ‘That will come. You have to keep working on it.’”
That hard work is paying dividends. Kelly – a well-kept secret on a team with more than a few big-name players – is a dangerous weapon. In the Ghosts’ recent win over Council Rock South, she scored 17 points, connecting on for four three-pointers and coming within inches of her fifth.
“I don’t know if Council Rock South had even mentioned Jen Kelly in their pre-game,” Marsh said. “They probably should have because she killed them.”
It was in the Rock South game that Kelly scored the historic basket that vaulted her to the 100-trey plateau.
“I had no idea,” she said. “Marsh called a timeout, and he had the microphone and announced that it was my 100th three.
“I kind of looked around like, ‘What’s going on?’”
Kelly received flowers from her family.
“I was just shocked,” she said. “I had no idea.”
She might never have known if Marsh hadn’t decided to keep track of such things.
“I think it’s great, especially for Jen because she’s the type of kid people don’t notice,” the Ghosts’ coach said. “She’s not the kind of kid that’s going to stand out on our team because we have a couple of girls that are D-1, and they get all the attention.
“They have to double Emily (Leer), and she gets a lot of good looks.”
While she is a threat on the offensive end, Kelly is also a standout defender.
“Jen’s not the quickest girl in the world, but she makes up for that by playing intelligent defense,” Marsh said. “She’s always in help defense, and she’ll get sneaky steals. She takes pride in her defense.
“She doesn’t want anybody to get by her. Obviously, people do, but if you score on Jen, you earn it.”
Although she measures in at just 5-5, Kelly, according to her coach, is one tough customer.
“She always boxes out,” Marsh said. “She’s fierce.
“If I ever had to go in a dark alley, I’d take Jen with me, and that’s why.”
Kelly has been playing basketball for as long as she can remember. Lacrosse and volleyball were added much later. She actually played travel soccer until last fall when she opted to give it up.
While competing in four sports might be too much for even the most diehard competitor, that’s not why Kelly decided to walk away.
“A lot of the girls weren’t doing it, and it didn’t seem I’d have that much fun,” she said. “That’s what I played it for – to have fun.”
And Kelly has always had a lot of fun competing in sports.
“I really enjoy playing sports,” she said. “It’s something I’ve always enjoyed.”
Kelly had dabbled in volleyball a bit at the CYO level and decided to try out for the high school team as a freshman since she wasn’t playing any other sport in the fall.
“I heard it was really fun, and it looked like fun,” she said. “A lot of my friends were doing it, so I was like, ‘Okay, I’ll try it out.’”
She was a natural to play libero.
“She’s always diving on the floor, picking up loose balls – that kind of stuff,” Marsh said.
Kelly enjoyed being part of a building process that saw the Ghosts reach new heights.
“It was great because volleyball has always been looked at as – ‘They’re not very good,’” she said. “To actually have a good team and perform well and go to the playoffs when we’ve never been to the playoffs – it was great.
“Everyone had a good relationship, everyone got along. It was just a great experience.”
Lacrosse also has been a source of enjoyment for Kelly.
“All those girls are great too, and every year we build more and more,” she said. “I think I’m lucky to be part of three great teams.”
Did Kelly ever consider giving up one of the sports?
“I love all three sports,” she said. “I have thought about it in the past, but my high school career wouldn’t be complete if I stopped playing one.”
Kelly’s first love has always been basketball.
“It’s just the intensity of the game,” she said. “When I was younger, my dad taught me and inspired me to go forth and play hard, always work hard and put my heart into it. For some reason, I just really love the game. It’s something I will do my whole life.”
Kelly hopes to continue her basketball career at the collegiate level, although hasn’t decided on a college just yet. She plans to major in kinesiology/nutrition with her sights set on one day becoming a personal trainer.
For now, Kelly is focusing on what promises to be an exciting finish to a special season for the Ghosts.
“It’s great,” she said. “Everyone is working together. Earlier in the year, we had chemistry problems because there were some new people, and you have to get used to how each other plays.
“Now we’re looking good together. I feel like everything is coming together at a good point because this is when it needs to come together.”
