The summer before she was set to begin her freshman year in high school, Kelly Robinson tore the ACL in her right knee. The highly regarded point guard endured months of rehabilitation and after healing, went on to build a reputation as a skilled athlete heading into her senior year.
Then she tore the ACL in her other knee.
“I got really down when I tore it this year,” said Robinson, a senior at Francis Lewis High School. “I didn’t know what was going to happen to me and if I was going to be able to play ball in college.”
Robinson, 18, signed a letter of intent to join the University of Massachusetts (UMass) basketball team the previous November after school recruiters saw her play with the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU).
It was a dream come true that almost became a nightmare.
“I was lucky because my family knew how to deal with this injury,” said Robinson. “My brother also tore his playing football, so we had really good doctors and now I’m on my way back.”
Getting back on the court means rehabbing her knee three days a week with an emphasis on strength and agility. Robinson is confident that her hard work will have her ready for the start of her freshman year at UMass.
Robinson has always been ready ahead of time. By the time she arrived in her senior year, she had already accumulated enough credits to graduate; this achievement enables her to be finished with school by 10:30 a.m. Teenagers everywhere roll their eyes with envy.
“My parents always pushed a school-first attitude,” said Robinson. “They told me that as long as I got my work done, I could play. Academics are always the most important part of school.”
This belief figures to carry over to Robinson’s college career, where she plans on studying sociology and communication disorders. She wants to help people with their communication skills because she believes that is the key to success.
“My job on the court is to make sure that everyone stays focused,” said Robinson. “The point guard is supposed to be the leader of the team, and leaders have to communicate.”
According to her coach Stephen Tsai, Robinson has the ability to communicate without even saying a word. This, coupled with her court vision, makes Robinson a formidable opponent on any team.
“Sometimes the other players just watch her and can see her as a model for style of play and attitude,” said Tsai, who is in his first full year coaching the girls’ basketball team. “And her vision is uncanny. I believe that with her court vision, she could play on the boys’ team.”
Robinson learned her hoops skills on the courts of the AAU. She played for the New York Lady Xplosion and learned many of her leadership skills under the tutelage of coach Dom Cecala.
“Coach Dom taught me what I needed to do to get to the next level,” said Robinson. “I am very thankful for the AAU. If not for them, I never would have done all the things I have, like visiting all the different surrounding states. That team became like a family to me.”
AAU also gave her a social outlet besides the one that comes with being a high school student. Robinson believes in the importance of knowing as many different people as possible, not only in high school, but in college as well.
“It is important to have a social life in college,” said Robinson. “They say that the friends you make in college are the ones that will be with you for the rest of your life. Plus, it is good to know different people in different areas. If you stay with one group your whole life, you don’t really get to see what is out there.”
For Robinson, what is out there is a world of endless possibilities because of her will to succeed both on and off the court. As she heads off for college and the world beyond, Robinson is thankful for her family, her friends and all of the people along the way that helped her realize her dreams.
“Mentors are a big part of your life. You need that someone who you know you can go to for anything,” said Robinson. “And I feel lucky to have had a few of those in my life. Sometimes you need a little push.”
