Whether it’s for volleyball or track and field, former Kapa‘a High School standout athlete Jennifer Lindsey won’t be changing her school colors anytime soon, as she plans to head to the University of Hawai‘i at Manoa in the fall. “I
Whether it’s for volleyball or track and field, former Kapa‘a High School standout athlete Jennifer Lindsey won’t be changing her school colors anytime soon, as she plans to head to the University of Hawai‘i at Manoa in the fall.
“I was told by the track coach that I have a chance for a partial scholarship and I was also invited to walk-on by coach Shoji for the volleyball team,” Lindsey said.
The former Warrior has already garnered over $6,000 in merit scholarships and has her eyes set on suiting up as a Rainbow Warrior.
“I’m going over there (O‘ahu) on the 18th (of July) to play along with the volleyball team and I’ll also get a chance to work with some of the track and field athletes and coaches as well,” Lindsey noted.
She chose UH-Manoa over the likes of Colorado University, where her dad attended, Long Beach State University, and UH-Hilo.
Lindsey plans to major in marine biology with hopes of becoming a marine biologist or something related to that field.
Although she participated in swimming and volleyball, Lindsey’s bread and butter seemed to be in track and field, where she earned two straight state high jump titles.
“Last year I didn’t have high jump shoes and coach Edwards told me to get some for this season and it helped me jump about an inch higher,” Lindsey said.
But despite being the top dog going into this year’s state track and field championships, Lindsey was graced with unlucky fortunes.
“I got an ankle injury a week before the KIF championship meet and I think it was because I wasn’t so used to the long cleats on my shoes,” Lindsey said.
“When I lost at KIF I was pretty bummed and I didn’t know if my ankle would heal up, but I just started icing it up and took a week off,” Lindsey said.
This year’s state meet at Mililani High School was also a tougher task for Lindsey to conquer.
“Even though I won at states last year, this season was so different because I was expected to win and there was so much pressure, plus I’ve never been more nervous in my life,” Lindsey said.
After making the 4-10 jump on her first try, she was nervous about the next feat of 4-11, but her confidence grew after getting warmed up.
“Once they moved it up to 5-01 and made it on my first try, I knew I was going to win and the adrenaline kicked in,” Lindsey said.
Along the way, Lindsey mentioned that she wouldn’t have been able to be successful without the help from coach Edwards, Joanne Kaona, who made her go out for track and field, and her parents, Steve and Dyann, along with her grandmother, Mary-Alice Heddleston, who remains active by participating in a basketball league in Kilauea.
As the summer rolls along, Lindsey plans to stay in shape and ready for the challenges up ahead.
“I just got a job as a surf instructor at a surf camp for little kids, I play beach volleyball, and lift weights,” Lindsey said.
