Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1430714
D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 1 4 3 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M game. But in the quarterfinals of the Big East tournament, she collided with a Georgetown player and twisted her right knee, tearing multiple ligaments, including her ACL. As devastating as the injury was, Jekot never had any doubts that she was going to try to come back. But where? She had entered the transfer portal, and while she saw Penn State as a potential land- ing spot — she had been a Lady Lions fan growing up, attending games back when Maggie Lucas was the team's star player — she wasn't sure whether Kieger would show interest. The Nittany Lions' head coach did indeed reach out, and Jekot enrolled at Penn State in January 2020, watching from the sideline while she continued to recover from her injury. She went into her debut season at PSU with a newfound appreciation for the game because, as she explained at the time, "it can be taken away from you at any given point." It was taken away again last January, but Jekot stayed positive, helping out wherever possible. "It was more of a player-coach type of role," she explained. "As a leader on the team, I was just trying to use my voice and help the underclassmen." A year ago, Kieger said Penn State valued "process over outcome." As the youngest team in the Big Ten, the Lady Lions were prepared for some growing pains, but they were confident that an accumulation of steady improvements would eventually start to pay dividends. They ended up going 9-15 overall and 6-13 in the Big Ten. With the 2021-22 season underway, they're hoping that the payoff is at hand. Kieger said the theme this year is "mis- sion accomplishment," and she doesn't hesitate to say what the mission is. "We're trying to get to that NCAA Tournament," she said. "What does that look like? Every day is different, but we're trying to attack everything at 100 percent." Jekot's return will certainly help. She's the only player on Penn State's roster to have ever seen action in an NCAA Tournament game. During Vil- lanova's appearance in 2018, she played 42 minutes in an 81-74 overtime victory over South Dakota State, totaling nine points and eight rebounds. Two days later, she was the team's second-leading scorer with 16 points in a 98-72 loss to Notre Dame. Now, she's aiming to get back to the postseason with a Penn State team that may not be the Big Ten's youngest any- more but is still awfully young. Having a sixth-year senior in the backcourt gives PSU the kind of steady leadership it will need if it's going to take the next step forward. And while Jekot already has built an extensive college resume, she's as eager to take that step as anyone. "It's always been my dream to play here, and last year I unfortunately only got to play nine games," she said. "I wanted to end on the right note, and I have full confidence that this team will get to the NCAA Tournament this year." ■ 2 0 2 1 - 2 2 W O M E N ' S B A S K E T B A L L S C H E D U L E Date Opponent Result/Time (ET) Nov. 9 Long Island W, 85-66 Nov. 11 Rider W, 83-69 Nov. 16 Delaware State 7 p.m. Nov. 21 at Clemson 2 p.m. Nov. 26 St. John's* 7:30 p.m. Nov. 27 Opponent TBD* TBA Nov. 28 Opponent TBD* TBA Dec. 2 at Boston College (ACCN) 6 p.m. Dec. 6 at Indiana (BTN) 6 p.m. Dec. 9 Rutgers 7 p.m. Dec. 12 Youngstown State 2 p.m. Dec. 18 at Duquesne 2 p.m. Dec. 22 Towson Noon Dec. 30 Iowa 3 p.m. Jan. 3 at Ohio State 7 p.m. Jan. 6 at Maryland (BTN) 6 p.m. Jan. 13 Michigan 7 p.m. Jan. 16 Illinois 2 p.m. Jan. 20 at Northwestern 8 p.m. Jan. 23 at Wisconsin 3 p.m. Jan. 27 Michigan State 7 p.m. Jan. 30 Maryland 2 p.m. Feb. 3 at Nebraska (BTN) 8 p.m. Feb. 6 Northwestern 2 p.m. Feb. 9 at Purdue 8 p.m. Feb. 13 at Rutgers 2 p.m. Feb. 17 Nebraska 7 p.m. Feb. 21 at Michigan State (BTN) 6 p.m. Feb. 27 Minnesota TBA March 3-6 Big Ten Tournament TBA * Gulf Coast Showcase at Estero, Fla. PENN STATE 2021-22 ROSTER NO NAME POS. CL. HT. HOMETOWN HIGH SCHOOL/PREVIOUS COLLEGE 2020-21 SEASON 0 Nyam Thornton G So. 5-7 Columbus, Ohio Columbus Africentric Played in 10 games, with two starts 1 Ali Brigham F So. 6-4 Franklin, Mass. Franklin/George Washington Led GW in scoring at 11.9 points per game 3 Ymke Brouwer F Fr. 6-0 Zurich, Switzerland United School of Sports 4 Niya Beverley G Sr.+ 5-7 Laurel, Md. St. John's College/Wisconsin Led Big Ten with 3.88 assist-to-turnover ratio 5 Leilani Kapinus G R-Fr. 5-10 Madison, Wis. James Madison Memorial Missed season due to injury 10 Tova Sabel G So. 5-10 Stockholm, Sweden Bromma Gymnasium Averaged 5.0 points, 2.1 rebounds per game 11 Anna Camden F Jr. 6-3 Downingtown, Pa. The Shipley School Made 23 starts, averaging 7.3 points, 3.3 rebounds 12 Kayla Thomas F Fr. 6-3 Beltsville, Md. Emerge Christian Academy 15 Maddie Burke G So. 6-0 Doylestown, Pa. Central Bucks West Named Big Ten Sixth Player of the Year 20 Makenna Marisa G Jr. 5-11 McMurray, Pa. Peters Township Averaged 5.0 assists per game to rank fifth in Big Ten 22 Alli Campbell G So. 6-0 Altoona, Pa. Bellwood-Antis/Notre Dame Saw action in six games for Fighting Irish 23 Shay Hagans G Jr. 5-6 Manassas, Va. Osbourn Park Made 19 starts, averaging 7.0 points, 3.2 rebounds and 1.6 assists 25 Kelly Jekot G Gr. 6-0 Enola, Pa. Cumberland Valley/Villanova Averaged 15.9 points in nine games