Volleyball's 25: Jenni Keene
Wednesday, August 20, 2008 | Volleyball
By: Sean Cartell
UF Communications
Editor's Note: This is the 16th of a 25-part daily series on GatorZone.com honoring the great players in Florida volleyball history (in no particular rank or order) leading up to the start of the 25th season since Gator volleyball was reinstated as a varsity sport prior to the 1984 campaign.
Standing at 5-foot-11, former Florida volleyball player Jenni Keene might have been a bit taller than a lot of her non-volleyball classmates. But, if those people considered Keene a giant, she would have to be a gentle giant.
Keene, who played for the Gators from 1994-98, was a fierce competitor whose drive to win was unmatched on her squad.
“When I play volleyball, I want to kill the other team,” Keene said in an Oct. 30, 1996 article in the Florida Alligator. “I want to get off the court as quickly as possible. I want to win 15-0, 15-0, 15-0 and be off the court in two minutes.”
But the difference between Keene's on-court and off-court personality was as different as night and day. Keene was an animal lover who often brought home a variety of creatures to care for and look after.
“Ever since I was little, I just loved animals,” Keene told the Alligator's J.L. Kirby. “My mom felt bad for me because the insects always died. But I'd see a bug and I'd just like to have it.”
Keene's ability to relate to animals translated to people as well, as she was often selected to serve as a guide for students interested in coming to the University of Florida. When soccer coach Becky Burleigh was forming the Florida soccer program prior to the 1995 season, she would use student-athletes from other sports to serve as hosts for soccer recruits.
“Jenni Keene knows a lot of other athletes on campus,” Burleigh said. “She was a good host because she could introduce the recruits around.”
Florida head volleyball coach Mary Wise agreed, saying that Keene was one of the Gators' best ambassadors.
“She's such a personable kid and so well-liked and fun to be around,” Wise told the Gainesville Sun. “She's as high on the University of Florida as anyone. I think she'd make a great admissions officer when her playing career is done.”
Keene cited her love for people as the reason for her positive disposition.
“I am a social person and I try to get along with everyone,” Keene said. “I like to help people and I like trying to get people to come here. I just try to make everyone happy.”
Keene was born in Italy, lived in Georgia until she was 8 and then moved west to California with her mother. Living in Lodi, Calif., Keene participated in volleyball and track and field. She was chosen as an All-American at the 1992 Junior Nationals and was named an alternate for the 1992 USA Youth National Team. She was a two-time Most Valuable Player of the San Joaquin Athletic Association and was named to the SJAA first team three consecutive seasons.
Keene helped her high school team to a first-place finish at the SJAA tournament and runner-up honors in the Northern California playoffs in 1992. She was named to Volleyball Monthly's Fab-50 list and was a member of the 1993 U.S. Amateur Developmental Sports volleyball team that traveled to Australia and Hawaii.
Keene considered staying close to home and playing collegiate volleyball at the University of the Pacific, but her mother advised against that idea. She wanted her daughter to be far enough away from home to where she had to handle her own problems without the temptation of running home for help.
Keene went more than 3,000 miles away to Florida, which put her closer to her father in Georgia. But being away from the only home she knew, where most of her family resided, was difficult for Keene.
“It's hard,” Keene told the Alligator's J.L. Kirby. “I call my mom almost every day. My whole family used to come to all my games. I think sometimes she regrets encouraging me to leave home.”
And while Keene was far away from her family, her mother purchased a 1-800 number to allow her daughter to be able to telephone home anytime she wanted.
“I miss my mom and my brothers and sister in California, but since they have a 1-800 phone number for me, I talk to them everyday,” Keene said.
Keene arrived in Gainesville with fellow freshmen Shannon Mason and Aurymar Rodriguez and the trio was featured in an Oct. 21, 1994 article by Antonya English in the Gainesville Sun entitled “Freshmen of Influence.”
“When we recruited Jenni Keene, what we were looking for is quickness, a big jumper and a heavy hitter and that's what she gives us,” Wise told English. “Of the three, she has probably played consistently at the highest level. I'm really excited because I think the future on the outside at the University of Florida is Aurymar and Jenni Keene. That's a key position in women's volleyball and to have that talent in our freshman class is pretty exciting.”
Wise complemented Keene's abilities from the get-go, saying in the outlook section of the team's 1994 media guide, “We have a freshman, Jenni Keene, who is extremely quick and will give us instant offense.”
Her experience on the court wasn't the only thing that was exciting for Keene when she arrived on campus. The popularity of the Florida volleyball team and its players was a surprise for Keene, despite coming from a volleyball hotbed in California.
“There are so many people at our matches and there is just so much support on campus – tons of it,” Keene told the Sun. “One of the things I did not expect was for people to be asking for autographs.
“I was going to a football game and this little girl was there and said 'Look mom, there's Jennifer Keene.' I almost fell over because I was so embarrassed because I'm not used to that. Volleyball is so big here. People come up and say they cheer for us. It's so weird, but it's really exciting.”
Keene wasn't able to show her offensive prowess as much as she would have liked during her freshman season. Shoulder problems limited her to play the back row for much of the season, but she took advantage of the opportunity.
“My shoulder has been really hurting,” Keene said. “That has been the most difficult challenge so far. I'm getting used to the higher speed and competition of the game.”
Keene filled in for injured teammate Claire Roach on the back row and recorded a then-career-high 12 digs and served two aces in a match against No. 15 Texas.
“Jenni Keene makes plays in practice that have the coaching staff shaking their heads in amazement,” Wise said.
Keene had shoulder surgery the following off-season and was forced to red-shirt the 1995 campaign. She came back energized for the 1996 campaign and continued to amaze the coaching staff. Her high-flying acrobatics left Wise calling her “The Blur.”
“In the six years I've been here, I've never had a player who can come from so far away and get the ball the way Keener does,” Wise said in an Oct. 13, 1996 article in the Gainesville Sun by Paul Jenkins. “I don't even think as fast as she moves. She's a showstopper.”
Showstopper indeed.
Keene was a starter at the outside hitter position playing in each of the team's 39 matches. She had a career-high 27 digs against Michigan State in the Central Regional Championship to help send the Gators to the Final Four.
It became apparent to Wise that Keene's breakout performance in the regional semifinal contest could become a norm for Florida in the 1997 campaign.
“Jenni Keene has the ability to give us the same kind of play we saw against Michigan State on a consistent basis,” Wise said in the outlook section of the team's 1997 media guide. “With a year's experience in the starting lineup, we expect her to take on a bigger role for us.”
Keene had the opportunity to play more of a role on the offensive side of things her junior season, but she insisted that the way she could most help her team was with her defense.
“Defense is my role on this team,” she told Gainesville Sun writer John Hollis in a Sept. 18, 1997 article. “My role is to get every ball. I've got to dig. I've got to pass. Hitting comes after that.”
Wise agreed, but said that Keene's improved all-around game in addition to her experience helped her make an important impact on the team's success.
“There's no substitute for experience,” Wise told the Sun. “A year ago this time, she was in a new role, starting for the first time. The key things for her were her passing and defense. The kills were a bonus. Passing and defense are still her primary role, only now the bonus points are coming more often. Jenni's responding by playing so well, it gives other teams headaches.”
One of Keene's proudest moments came during her junior season when the Gators stormed back from two games down on the road at Wisconsin in the NCAA Regional Final match to win in five games and help Florida advance to its second consecutive Final Four.
Keene led the team and ranked fifth in the SEC in digs per game (3.17), recording double-digit digs in 19 matches. Keene posted 11 double-doubles on the season, including three matches in the NCAA Tournament. She ranked third on the team in aces per game (0.28) and fourth in kills per game (2.41).
Wise knew that it would be important in 1998 that Keene, then a senior, be a leader on the back row.
“For us to be successful this year, Jenni's got to lead us in digs,” Wise said in the outlook section of the team's 1998 media guide.
As the Gainesville Sun's Doris Yon wrote in an Aug. 23, 1998 article, “It's hard to talk about the Florida volleyball team's defense without mentioning Jenni Keene.”
“She sets the standard in defense,” Wise told Yon. She has developed into an all-around player. Certainly what she's given us defensively has gotten us to the Final Four, but it's the combination of her other parts of the game that has impressed me.
“You combine her foot speed with her big jump, and now that her technique is so solid, she's become a really smart hitter,” Wise continued. “She's the prototype outside hitter in the college game.”
Early on, it was difficult for Keene to play a reserve role on the team, and that wasn't aided by her bout with injuries early in her Florida career. But by the time the 1998 season rolled around, Keene's time had come.
“It was frustrating but I knew I needed to wait my turn because I had great outside hitters in front of me,” Keene told the Alligator. “I knew there would come a time for me.”
“Jenni is an example of how it works at the University of Florida program,” Wise told the Gainesville Sun. “If you work and be patient, and when your time comes, you take advantage of it.”
What initially seemed to be a back-up role became a position that Keene prided herself on.
“I've always had more fun playing defense,” Keene told Brent Jones of the Alligator. “Being a big hitter myself, I know when somebody digs me how demoralizing it is. I think it sends a message.”
Keene finished her career fourth on UF's all-time career digs list with 1,144 scoops. She was named to the All-SEC team her senior campaign – not too bad of a feat for the gentle giant.
| From the Vault |
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| Jenni Keene's 1998 Player Profile Questionnaire |
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| I came to UF because: I was impressed by the fan support for all of the sports at UF. Also, I enjoyed the atmosphere of a fun college town and all the fun activities it provided. I guess I took into account that I'd be playing for the best Division I coaching staff and I also took into account the fact that I saw real Gators on my recruiting visit. |
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| The person most inspirational to me and why: Everyone in my family because no one ever pushed me into anything and they totally supported all of my choices. |
| If I could trade places with someone for a day, it would be: Siegfried and Roy – that way I could play with the tigers all day long. |
| If I couldn't play volleyball, I would: Get a job at a zoo to work with animals. |
| My most memorable moment at UF is: Beating Wisconsin when we were down by two games to go to the Final Four. |
| My greatest accomplish outside of volleyball is: Coming to Florida. |
| The biggest hardship I've overcome is: Leaving my family in California to go to school here. |
| My favorite job was: Working at Mickey Groove Zoo in Lodi, Calif. – I got to feed all of the animals and clean their cages. Sometimes I even got to play with them. |
| Anything else you'd like to add: Thank you to all of the fans and to my family for all of their support throughout my career here. |
END OF REPORT
