The Sky's the Limit

Volleyball star Kielty will launch collegiate career with Rockets

BY ED WRIGHT
Nov. 21, 2009, 8:45 p.m.

  Jordan Kielty's incredibly eventful year grew by one incredible event Friday night.

  Eight months after suffering a serious knee injury, one month after being crowned Canton's Homecoming queen and a couple weeks after earning All-Region and All-Conference volleyball honors, Kielty officially announced she has committed to further her volleyball career at the University of Toledo beginning next fall.

  The chances of Friday's announcement unfolding seemed remote in March when Kielty suffered an injury to the anterior cruciate ligament in her left knee.

  However, several months of diligent rehabilitation on the knee combined with the talent that elevated Kielty to become one of the elite players in the history of Canton's program steamrolled the adversity that threatened to curtail her post-high school career.

  "Because of my injury, I wasn't sure what to expect," Kielty said Friday night during a ceremony attended by her parents, Dave and Gail; sister Madison; and coaches Mary Kryska, Jen Barnes and Steve Johnson.

  "When I visited Toledo's campus I loved everything about it; there were no negatives. The campus is beautiful. I loved the facilities, the people, the atmosphere. I went to a couple volleyball games and actually went to a couple classes with a girl who plays there now.

  "After my injury, I wasn't expecting much because it's been just eight months since I got hurt and I've only been playing for two months. I'm just really happy how everything has happened."

  Kielty said her knee problems are a part of her past.

  "I'm very close to being 100 percent again," she said. "My knee is fully healed. I just need to get the strength in my leg all the way back."

  Kielty has a good idea what she wants to study at Toledo.

  "I really enjoy early-childhood education," she said. "I'm also thinking about special education. And because of what I've gone through with my knee, physical therapy is a possibility."

  Ed Wright can be reached at (734) 453-1980 or [email protected].