School: Plymouth Whitemarsh
Soccer, Basketball
Favorite athlete: David Beckham, Cristiano Ronaldo & Chase Utley
Favorite team: Philadelphia Phillies & the UConn women’s basketball team
Favorite memory competing in sports: This past fall, my high school soccer team made it to playoffs for the first time in school history.
Most embarrassing/funniest thing that has happened while competing in sports: Rap battles with my basketball team on the way home from our away games.
Music on iPod: Drake & Taylor Swift plus a little bit of everything
Future plans: Attending Penn State University or the University of Maryland as an undecided major
Words to live by: “The only place where success comes before work is in the dictionary.”
One goal before turning 30: Travel around Europe
One thing people don’t know about me: I have attended two cooking camps.
Mention the word character to Plymouth Whitemarsh coach Becky Duffy, and Kelly Hackenbrack immediately comes to mind.
“When I think of character, very few people surpass Kelly,” the PW girls’ basketball coach said. “She is one of the most cognizant, conscientious and hard-working people I know.
“One of my favorite quotes that we talk about in the locker room is that ‘Adversity doesn’t build character, it reveals it.’”
It didn’t take long for Hackenbrack’s character to show through when Duffy took over the helm of a struggling basketball program last year.
“The communication wasn’t there in the past, so when I came in, I started running things a little differently,” Duffy said. “Some of the girls took to it, some of them didn’t.
“She was one of those girls that even though she might not have had a huge following – she led by example and did her thing every day. She came in and worked hard.”
For Hackenbrack, it’s never been about winning a popularity contest or choosing the path of least resistance. It’s about doing the right thing.
“I don’t mind speaking my mind – saying something other players might want to say but don’t,” the PW senior said. “Sometimes players don’t always want to listen to what the coach says, so maybe if I or one of the other captains says it, they’ll listen.”
Hackenbrack is a captain of the basketball team, and she also was captain of last fall’s soccer team that earned a berth in the postseason for the first time in school history.
“That was a roller coaster kind of experience,” she said of her soccer team’s rise over the years. “My freshman year we were 1-15, and this year we came all the way to the playoffs.
“My freshman year we had no seniors and no real leadership. We were all kind of young. My sophomore and junior years we missed the playoffs by one spot, and this year we made it. To be part of the seniors to do that was definitely amazing.”
A four-year varsity player, Hackenbrack played striker or midfield for the Colonials.
“She always put the team first,” coach Stephen Slack said. “She understood and had knowledge about the game which transferred onto the soccer field to her benefit.
“It was a delight to coach Kelly.”
Hackenbrack has been competing in sports since she was a youngster. She also played softball but dropped that sport when she reached high school and was forced to choose between softball and soccer since both were played in the spring.
“I have always loved sports,” she said. “I have an older brother who played sports, and my dad played when he was younger.
“Basically, all my cousins were boys except one, so I had that influence to do whatever they were doing.”
Hackenbrack’s love for sports was put to the test during her freshman and sophomore basketball seasons that saw the Colonials struggle mightily.
“It was hard keeping everyone together when we were not winning as much as we would have liked,” she said. “Once Richmond (Duffy) came in, she definitely turned it around.”
The Colonials are off to a 2-0 start in SOL play (2-2 overall) with Hackenbrack playing the role of floor general.
“She’s not naturally a point guard, but she does a good job with that position,” Duffy said. “One of the things we lacked was that calming things down on the court, and Kelly just has that presence.
“She’s a senior. She knows when to attack and when to pull the ball back.”
Duffy points to Hackenbrack as one of her top defenders.
“She’s sort of an unsung hero for us,” the Colonials’ coach said. “She’s not scoring a ton of points a game, but she’s such a hard worker, and she’s really humble. She doesn’t ever look for credit.
“I know I don’t have to get on her. If I tell her something and I say it with a little bit of a tone that I’m disappointed – that’s all it takes. She’s ready to work and get better.”
It’s the type of leadership Duffy is looking for from her point guard and captain.
“You never have to ask her to do something,” PW’s second-year coach said. “She’s 100 percent self-motivated.
“If people don’t follow her or agree with her, she’s not going to turn around and talk about them behind her back because she’s upset. She’s mature. She’s got a very subtle confidence about her, and she leads by example.”
Being a leader comes naturally to Hackenbrack.
“I definitely like being a captain,” she said. “Anyone can come up and talk to me. I like relaying information from the coaches and being really organized.
“I’ve always been like that, so I really like taking on the challenge of that.”
Duffy marvels at Hackenbrack’s organizational skills.
“We have a joke with the team that if I ever forget to remind the team about something, Kelly will always remember to remind me, and she does so with the utmost respect and kindness,” the PW coach said. “We joke that she’s a human computer.
“If I say to her, ‘Remind me after practice I have three things to say.’ I’ll be walking away after practice, and she’ll say, ‘Coach, you said you had three things to say.’ She’s always on top of things.”
Coming as no surprise, Hackenbrack takes that same work ethic into the classroom where she boasts a 3.82 GPA (4.44 weighted). She has been a member of the National Honor Society since she was a junior and enjoys volunteering her time for community service.
“I really like being involved,” she said. “It’s different than sports, but you’re still involved with a lot of people.”
Hackenbrack has taken three AP classes and has already been accepted into Penn State (main campus). She is waiting to hear back from several other schools before making a final decision.
As for a major – the PW senior is leaning toward something involving government/politics and acknowledges she has always been fascinated with journalism and current events.
Hackenbrack takes her education seriously and has not missed a day of school in four years.
“She’s unbelievable,” Duffy said. “I had her in class as a freshman, and I think the number one word you’d use for Kelly is conscientious.”
Hackenbrack also is a member of the steering committee for the Class of 2011 and has been active in fundraisers for class activities.
“I wanted to go into high school knowing what clubs and activities I wanted to do, so I would have it for four years just to stay involved,” she said. “I didn’t want to be one of those kids who just went home at 2:20 every day.”
It’s safe to say this is one student-athlete who has gotten her money’s worth from her high school experience. And then some.
