Boston College Athletics
Photo by: John Quackenbos
Kenzie Kent: The All-Around All-Star
May 11, 2017 | Women's Hockey, Lacrosse, #ForBoston Files
Two-sport athletes are rare, but Kent is excelling at both hockey and lacrosse for BC.
There's a level of satisfaction for college athletes. Stemming from hours in the gym, on the field, it's something only they know. They form bonds with teammates, spend countless practices honing their skills, all on the backdrop of the same academic rigors of every other college student. When they succeed, both on the field and off, it brings a feeling only they can ever know.
Succeeding as a one-sport student-athlete is tough enough. But for Kenzie Kent, it's a two-sport grind with no off-season. As a member of the women's hockey program, she's a top-line wing on one of the nation's strongest and most competitive programs. As a member of the lacrosse program, she's a Tewaaraton Award Watch List nominee as one of the best players in the entire country.
It's all perfectly normal for a student-athlete who originally didn't think it would be possible.
"During my recruitment, I never thought I would play two sports in college," Kent said. "I was looking at colleges to play lacrosse, not hockey; I didn't think I was good enough to play Division I hockey. Then I came on my recruiting trip to BC, and I had a chance to talk to both coaching staffs. They were so great and they gave me the opportunity to pursue this. They made it possible."
For Kent, it's a season that never really ends. Her regular season starts in October with the women's hockey team and continues through the winter months. Following roughly 40 games on the ice, she transitions almost immediately into the lacrosse schedule, already underway. That takes her through to May. If both teams compete at a national level, as is the case this year, she'll wind up playing some type of sport in every month of the academic calendar.
"During hockey season, it's really easy to just focus in the beginning on just hockey," Kent said. "Lacrosse starts up in February, which is the beginning of tournament time for us on the ice. That makes it easy to focus, though I obviously want both of my teams to succeed all the time."
Just competing is one thing. But Kent is among her team leaders in both disciplines. On the ice, she eclipsed 100 career points this past season with nine goals and 17 assists, six of which came on special teams. As a member of the power play and penalty kill units, she's a trusted piece on a team that's won 102 games. Going deep into March every year, her first three years brought three national semifinal appearances.
"She's one of those players who does things behind the scenes to be effective," women's hockey head coach Katie Crowley said. "She's very consistent. Every game, we know what we're going to get from her on the ice, and she has a real knack for finding teammates in any situation."
It's a performance matched only by her lacrosse skill. She's scored 40 points in only seven games, including 18 goals and 22 assists. That's an encore from a year ago when she was named to the Tewaaraton Award Watch List while earning All-ACC Second-Team honors in only 10 games. Scoring 35 points, including 18 goals and 17 assists, she showed virtually no rust after playing 41 hockey games.
"She is an incredibly athletic person," Crowley said. "She can do things with a stick on the ice that makes us say, 'Oh that was a lacrosse move.' She's not just a hockey player or a lacrosse player because she excels athletically in both areas."
It's a level of success coming at arguably the toughest level. Hockey East is the premier Division I hockey conference, while the Atlantic Coast Conference is recognized as a lacrosse hotbed. That pushes the body to its limits in sports that require peak but different physical conditioning.
"Conditioning is different for the two sports, but the decision making is the same," Kent said. "Hockey is so fast that it can help with lacrosse. I have to try to know what I'm going to do before I even get the puck or make a play. So I try to use that mindset when I'm playing lacrosse."
"She is very aware of what to do and when to do it," said Crowley, who was also a two-sport athlete in college as a hockey and softball player. "We make sure that she gets her rest. We're fortunate with hockey that we come first in the season, but the biggest thing is rest so she can be ready for both hockey and lacrosse seasons. The one thing is that, as an athlete, you always feel at home playing sports. You don't look at it and say, 'Oh no' about playing long because you love and want to do it. You'd rather be playing sports than taking a week off."
It all falls on the backdrop of the regular college student experience. Boston College is known for its academic rigors, and the student-athlete opportunity comes with its own unique challenge.
"Academics in general are difficult but especially at BC," Crowley said. "Kenzie has a challenging workload. But she stays on it and she always in contact with her learning resources specialists and professors. She's taking care of it because she always has to be on top of all of it."
"The academics are really hard," Kent said. "But my academics advisors help pick times and classes that can maximize my time. I went to the Nobles and Greenough School before BC, and I was a three-sport athlete there. With hockey, I used to play up to seven times per week. So having to focus (at Nobles) really helped prepare for coming to college. It made the transition way easier."
It's an ambition that's helped her become one of Boston College's brightest stars. This year, she won the Carry The Torch Award at the Golden Eagle Awards as a BC athletics member whose contributions and efforts stood out for a new level of excellence to her community. Drawing support from two sports' teammates, she heads into Friday's NCAA Lacrosse Championship First Round game against Canisius bleeding Maroon and Gold with one full year left of double duty.
"My teammates are awesome," Kent said. "It's really cool to be able to see. It's great to see lacrosse come to every hockey game and hockey to come to every lacrosse game."
"Her teammates are her biggest fans," Crowley echoed. "The hockey team goes to as many lacrosse games as it can and the lacrosse team comes to as many hockey games as it can. There's a camaraderie among all of our teams but I think her teammates on both sides admire and respect the lot of work she's dedicated herself to."
BC lacrosse plays Canisius in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday at 4 p.m. The winner will advance to play Syracuse on Sunday.
Succeeding as a one-sport student-athlete is tough enough. But for Kenzie Kent, it's a two-sport grind with no off-season. As a member of the women's hockey program, she's a top-line wing on one of the nation's strongest and most competitive programs. As a member of the lacrosse program, she's a Tewaaraton Award Watch List nominee as one of the best players in the entire country.
It's all perfectly normal for a student-athlete who originally didn't think it would be possible.
"During my recruitment, I never thought I would play two sports in college," Kent said. "I was looking at colleges to play lacrosse, not hockey; I didn't think I was good enough to play Division I hockey. Then I came on my recruiting trip to BC, and I had a chance to talk to both coaching staffs. They were so great and they gave me the opportunity to pursue this. They made it possible."
For Kent, it's a season that never really ends. Her regular season starts in October with the women's hockey team and continues through the winter months. Following roughly 40 games on the ice, she transitions almost immediately into the lacrosse schedule, already underway. That takes her through to May. If both teams compete at a national level, as is the case this year, she'll wind up playing some type of sport in every month of the academic calendar.
"During hockey season, it's really easy to just focus in the beginning on just hockey," Kent said. "Lacrosse starts up in February, which is the beginning of tournament time for us on the ice. That makes it easy to focus, though I obviously want both of my teams to succeed all the time."
Just competing is one thing. But Kent is among her team leaders in both disciplines. On the ice, she eclipsed 100 career points this past season with nine goals and 17 assists, six of which came on special teams. As a member of the power play and penalty kill units, she's a trusted piece on a team that's won 102 games. Going deep into March every year, her first three years brought three national semifinal appearances.
"She's one of those players who does things behind the scenes to be effective," women's hockey head coach Katie Crowley said. "She's very consistent. Every game, we know what we're going to get from her on the ice, and she has a real knack for finding teammates in any situation."
It's a performance matched only by her lacrosse skill. She's scored 40 points in only seven games, including 18 goals and 22 assists. That's an encore from a year ago when she was named to the Tewaaraton Award Watch List while earning All-ACC Second-Team honors in only 10 games. Scoring 35 points, including 18 goals and 17 assists, she showed virtually no rust after playing 41 hockey games.
"She is an incredibly athletic person," Crowley said. "She can do things with a stick on the ice that makes us say, 'Oh that was a lacrosse move.' She's not just a hockey player or a lacrosse player because she excels athletically in both areas."
It's a level of success coming at arguably the toughest level. Hockey East is the premier Division I hockey conference, while the Atlantic Coast Conference is recognized as a lacrosse hotbed. That pushes the body to its limits in sports that require peak but different physical conditioning.
"Conditioning is different for the two sports, but the decision making is the same," Kent said. "Hockey is so fast that it can help with lacrosse. I have to try to know what I'm going to do before I even get the puck or make a play. So I try to use that mindset when I'm playing lacrosse."
"She is very aware of what to do and when to do it," said Crowley, who was also a two-sport athlete in college as a hockey and softball player. "We make sure that she gets her rest. We're fortunate with hockey that we come first in the season, but the biggest thing is rest so she can be ready for both hockey and lacrosse seasons. The one thing is that, as an athlete, you always feel at home playing sports. You don't look at it and say, 'Oh no' about playing long because you love and want to do it. You'd rather be playing sports than taking a week off."
It all falls on the backdrop of the regular college student experience. Boston College is known for its academic rigors, and the student-athlete opportunity comes with its own unique challenge.
"Academics in general are difficult but especially at BC," Crowley said. "Kenzie has a challenging workload. But she stays on it and she always in contact with her learning resources specialists and professors. She's taking care of it because she always has to be on top of all of it."
"The academics are really hard," Kent said. "But my academics advisors help pick times and classes that can maximize my time. I went to the Nobles and Greenough School before BC, and I was a three-sport athlete there. With hockey, I used to play up to seven times per week. So having to focus (at Nobles) really helped prepare for coming to college. It made the transition way easier."
It's an ambition that's helped her become one of Boston College's brightest stars. This year, she won the Carry The Torch Award at the Golden Eagle Awards as a BC athletics member whose contributions and efforts stood out for a new level of excellence to her community. Drawing support from two sports' teammates, she heads into Friday's NCAA Lacrosse Championship First Round game against Canisius bleeding Maroon and Gold with one full year left of double duty.
"My teammates are awesome," Kent said. "It's really cool to be able to see. It's great to see lacrosse come to every hockey game and hockey to come to every lacrosse game."
"Her teammates are her biggest fans," Crowley echoed. "The hockey team goes to as many lacrosse games as it can and the lacrosse team comes to as many hockey games as it can. There's a camaraderie among all of our teams but I think her teammates on both sides admire and respect the lot of work she's dedicated herself to."
BC lacrosse plays Canisius in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday at 4 p.m. The winner will advance to play Syracuse on Sunday.
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