Catching up with Kailene Abt
No matter what her age, Kailene Abt will always be remembered by Huntington teachers as that good natured and affable kid that graced local classrooms during her childhood years. But, now she’s all grown up and a sophomore at the University of Notre Dame where she is a hard-nosed competitor on a NCAA Division I lacrosse team.
Ms. Abt is still that sweet young woman that legions of Blue Devil fans came to adore. To say she was loved by her teammates is an understatement and her coaches always appreciated the standard of excellence she set for herself.
Notre Dame and the school community there seems to be the perfect fit for the highly competitive Huntington grad. “My experience here has been one of a kind,” Ms. Abt said. “Of course, the transition to school and lacrosse brought me to a whole different level. It definitely took me a semester to get settled like most people, but after that everything went smoothly. The level of lacrosse is completely different from high school, but it is an amazing experience.”
Abt, a 5-11 midfielder played in 17-of-19 Notre Dame games last spring, scoring seven goals and adding a pair of assists. She launched 28 shots, including 19 on goal. She also scooped up ten ground balls, drew 20 defensive charges and caused seven turnovers. All-in-all it the year was roundly regarded as a splendid start for a freshman.
“This level is so exciting and forces you to put your best out there every second,” Ms. Abt said. “I have learned so much about myself through taking it to the next level and have gained a stronger mental toughness, a level of fitness I have never reached before coming here and a greater love for lacrosse then ever. Freshman year really forced me to grow up. And this school gave me so much support in terms of my transition, especially my team. They truly are the nicest group of girls and we are all great friends.”
Notre Dame is coming off a 12-7 season. The team lost in the first round of the NCAA tournament to four-time national champion Northwestern. This fall, Ms. Abt and her teammates faced a challenging slate of games against Northwestern, Duke, North Carolina, Delaware, Princeton, Towson and the University of Cincinnati. The Fighting Irish have advanced to the NCAA tournament four times since 2002 and hope to move up a few notches in the national rankings next spring.
“In terms of school, I am taking a great group of classes this semester,” Ms. Abt said. “They include Criminology, Sociology, Introduction to American Studies, Peace Studies and a seminar on Discovering Self. They are very different from one another because this semester I was trying to decide what to major in. As of now, I am still deciding what I will major in, but I am leaning towards double majoring in American Studies and Sociology. I will probably declare majors in the next month.”
With the Huntington lacrosse team, Abt scored 165 goals and added 88 assists, winning 88 percent of her draws. As a Blue Devil senior, she recorded 62 goals and 25 assists and was one of the top female athletes in Suffolk. She was respected for her rugged style of play and showed a knack for being in the right place at the right time.
Abt’s Huntington career included playing on the varsity soccer, basketball and lacrosse teams. She earned All-County honors four times in lax and was All-County in basketball and All-League in soccer while serving as a team for all three teams.
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