Pressure comes in all shapes and sizes...Kristen Kelly was the daughter of an All American Football Player at Notre Dame, Jim Kelly (1963-End) An outstanding two sport athlete at Shawnee High School in Medford, NJ where she sprinted and long jumped in Track & Field....But it was Field Hockey where Kristen excelled..a 2x H.S. All American, 1990 New Jersey Defensive POY and South Jersey Defensive POY....and let's not forget being the #1 recruit in the nation....
She chose to attend UConn and play for Nancy Stevens...Coach described her in a Hartford Courant Article in 1993 someone whe "loves to play the game. And she conveys it every time she steps on the field, be it practice or game. By the time she steps off, she's covered in sweat." A hard worker with great passion for the game...
The teams she played on in the early 90's were building to what the Field Hockey Program is today. 10-8-1 in 1991, 10-9-1 in 1992, where Kelly scored 11 points in helping the Huskies win the Big East Tournament and garnering her first All American Honor as a Sophomore...11-8-2 in 1993 where as a Junior, again was named an All American...and when she was a Captain in 1994, the Huskies went 15-4-2. Where Kelly scored 12 goals and picked up 7 assists as UConn was a favorite to win the tournament...where Kelly scored a hat trick in a win over URI...But with a week to play in the regular season, Kelly suffered a season ending knee injury that effected the Huskies postseason hopes....Still Kelly for a third straight year was named an All American...
In her UConn Career, a 2x First Team all Big East, a 4x All Region performer....and for UConn, the programs 3rd, three time All American and the first since Tracy Fuchs a decade earlier. Kristen Kelly played on the U.S. National Team where in 1993, helped the U.S. win a World Cup Bronze Medal..And for the 1994-95 academic year, Kelly was nominated as a Finalist for the Honda Sports Award for Field Hockey..
In this day and age after spending many years in the Medical/Pharmaceutical Field, Kelly has been a Stylist with Peach, Inc, a women's clothing company since 2016....Kelly is married, live in the Philadelphia Area and is a mom to two sons....
Kristen Kelly, a three time, Field Hockey All American and a UConn Legend