Apollo’s own Jennifer Lee signed to play both basketball and volleyball with the Brescia Bearcats. Lee feels blessed to have the opportunity to play two sports at the collegiate level.
Lee finished her final season with the Apollo girls’ volleyball team this past Fall. Throughout the season the middle blocker led the E-gals in blocks with 75 and tied for second-most kills on the team with 232. In her final season of basketball, Lee was the team’s top scorer with 346 points in the season. She averaged 12.8 ppg, had a 43.9% FG%, averaged 8 rebounds a game and had the second-most rebounds on the team with 217 total.
It’s not lost on Lee how rare it is to be a 2-sport athlete in college. She said she feels lucky to be able play both of the sports she loves at the next level.
“It means the world to me and is a complete blessing,” she said. “When you look at the stats about how few high school athletes continue to the collegiate level, going even further with the stats for two sports, it puts it even more into perspective for me. I feel very lucky and grateful for the opportunity to play both sports.”
Brescia was appealing to Lee because it checked a lot of boxes including relatively close distance to home and a graphic design program. Staying in her hometown to attend college allows Lee to stay close to friends and family, and it allows them to watch her play regularly.
“It feels good knowing that nearly everyone I care about will be close to me,” she said. “I’m excited for my friends and family to still be able to come and watch my games. I’m also very happy I get to stay near my home church to volunteer and be with my church family.”
Lee already has in mind what her prep for her first college season will look like. She plans to play to her strengths while also working to elevate her game, and she has already discussed her next steps with staff.
“My prep for my first college season will be learning the new aspects of the game and perfecting what I am good at while also taking new steps to really elevate my game,” she said. “Talking to Mrs. Trina Riney and Coach C, we are all very excited to start getting into the gym to start new drills for this season.”
With time ticking down to her college debut, Lee looked back on what she will miss the most about high school sports. Lee said she’ll miss the excitement and rivalries of the 9th district the most. The commitment and support to sports that everyone has in the 3rd region is like that of having love for UK basketball, she said.
“I will probably miss district games the most,” she said. “I will miss the excitement and playing against girls I have known my whole life and the community that came with everyone coming together to watch all the schools play. The 9th district and the 3rd region are very special in this way when it comes to sports, meaning everyone supports it and loves it like it’s UK basketball.”
