FINDING A HOME: Moniteau Senior Guard Catherine Kelly Commits to Play at Thiel College

WEST SUNBURY, Pa. (EYT/D9) — When Catherine Kelly was in the fifth grade, that’s when she knew.

A feeling came over her. A rush of excitement as she dribbled a basketball, drove the lane and took a shot.

Swish.

She knew then. Basketball was it for her.

(Pictured above, Catherine Kelly/photos by PhotoJENics Photography)

Fast forward a few years and the Moniteau guard has become one of the most dynamic girls basketball players in District 9. Last year, she averaged 15 points and 4.7 rebounds per game in helping the Warriors to a 19-8 record. She also drained 42 3-pointers.

Now a senior, Kelly’s future is decided again.

Basketball is still it for her. It will be what she plays at the next level at Thiel College as Kelly committed to playing for the Bobcats late last week.

“I went on a lot of visits. When I was there, it was the only place really where I felt comfortable,” Kelly said. “It just kind of felt like home, so I just kind of knew that’s where I wanted to be. The atmosphere and the team is really good and upbeat. They just got a new coach and she’s looking to rebuild their program and I’ve been a part of a rebuilding program throughout my high school career. I just think I’d really fit in well there.”

Kelly fits in well wherever she plays.

With an eclectic skill set, Kelly is a dangerous weapon.

She can handle the ball well and has played point guard throughout her career with the Warriors. She can also play off the ball, spotting up and taking her shots from the perimeter, or driving the lane.

A gym rat — figuratively and literally as she played for the Gym Rats AAU basketball team — Kelly is constantly refining her game.

She wants to refine it even more.

“I want to keep working on all of my skills, but I definitely want to take my outside shooting to the next level,” Kelly said. “I would like to increase my range. I definitely want to get better at ball handling if I’m going to be playing point guard (at Thiel). Defensively I want to be able to play more tempo, in-your-face man defense, so I want to work on those things.”

Kelly is also looking forward to the rapidly approaching high school campaign at Moniteau.

The Warriors will have five senior starters — Kelly, Davina Pry, Abbey Jewart, Kendall Sankey and Allie Pry. That group has been playing and mostly starting together since they were freshmen.

“I’m really excited for the season,” Kelly said. “We’ve all been working so hard. We played in a summer league and a fall league and things are looking really good for us. I think we have a good chance at again competing for a district title and hopefully KSACs this year, too. Our goal is to win both of those this year. I think because we’re all seniors and we’ve all had a couple of years playing with each other, things should really come together for us this year.”

But with high expectations also comes pressure.

Kelly, though, has always been wise and mature beyond her years. It’s one of the things that strikes people when they meet and talk with her for the first time.

“I’ve always been that way,” she said.

That has served her well on the basketball court. She rarely gets flustered, even when things aren’t always going her way.

She thinks the rest of her teammates have the same ability to ignore the expectations, play and have fun as seniors.

“I think we all can handle it and hold up pretty well,” Kelly said. “We just know we have to play our game no matter what happens. I think if we can play our game and just play the hardest, things can go well for us.”

That game will be a little different.

And it makes Kelly happy.

“We’ve been working on playing full-court man, in-your-face defense because we’re not the tallest team this year,” Kelly said. “We need to be able to use some of our strengths to our advantage, and that’s definitely improved with all of us. I think that’s gonna help us a lot.”

Kelly has also worked hard this offseason honing her skills.

She sees the biggest difference in her strength and her ability to score in traffic.

That will certainly come in handy at the next level as well.

“For me, personally, I think my finishing around the rim and through contact has improved a lot because I’m not the tallest guard,” Kelly said. “I’m never one of the tallest players on the floor. That’s definitely gonna help me more.”

Kelly is never satisfied.

It’s a double-edged sword, but it has served her well over the years.

“Even though I’ve had some pretty good season, I’m always able to be like, ‘I can get better,’” she said. “There’s a lot of things I can get better at and that I need to get better at to help my team out. That’s been the main thing pushing me.”