High school can be a time filled with ups and downs—for Poly’s Kelli Thompson, that turmoil could end up looking like a four-year long circle. If Thompson and her teammates are successful tomorrow night in their attempt to capture a fourth-straight CIF title, they’ll make history. The 6′ UNLV commit is well aware of it—she’s the only player in the program who’s been there for all of them.
“It’s a unique situation for her,” says her coach Carl Buggs. “That would be history that could only be tied, never beaten.” And hard-earned history, at that. Thompson has had to overcome many obstacles on her way to Saturday night’s game, starting with a scary one her freshman year.
“I had an allergic reaction to the contact solution I was wearing, so I had an ulcer that covered my whole left eye,” remembers Thompson. “I was out of school and basketball for almost two months.” She ended up returning to her classes, and to the court, just a few days before the playoffs started, after weeks of hypersensitivity to light. “She almost lost vision in that eye,” says Buggs.
But the time away didn’t make affect her touch—in a quarterfinal CIF playoff game against Jurupa Valley, the Jackrabbits were trailing. If they lost, perhaps history would have taken a very different turn. Instead, the freshman Thompson hit five straight three’s to win the game, and allow Poly to advance. “She thrives in big games,” says Buggs. “She’s our designated shooter—that’s her role, putting up points.”
This year her role as also been that of a behind-the-scenes leader, a calming presence on a young team that hasn’t had the experiences she has. On the court, obviously, but off-the-court as well—with the way she’s battled off-court obstacles throughout her career, including injuries and a death in the family, it’s no wonder her coach speaks of her with such obvious affection. “It seems like there’s always been some tragedy in her life that’s slowed her progress,” says Buggs. “But she’s never out of control, she stays on an even keel.”
It was harder to do that this year, in her senior season—in mid-January, Thompson broke her wrist, apparently cutting short what was looking to be a stellar senior season. It’s only been the last few weeks that she’s seen time on the court. “It’s getting back to normal,” Thompson says. “I’ve been staying after practice getting shots up, trying to get my memory back.”
Her coach expect her to be a big part of the biggest game of the year, and maybe the biggest game of her career. It will, for better or worse, also be her last game as a Jackrabbit, of course, before she departs for UNLV next year. While there, she hopes to get an education for a career in forensic science (she wants to be a crime scene investigator), and also to help build another dynasty. But Thompson is a player with dynasties on the mind—and has been for years. “I started thinking about winning four straight my freshman year, actually,” she says. “It would mean a lot to me personally, since I’ve been here since the era started.”
“Of course there’s the whole team,” says Buggs, “But with Kelli, we’re hoping it rallies the team to be a part of something special in her life—that’s what teamwork’s all about.”
Thompson certainly understands that—she wants her experiences to help her fellow Jackrabbits grow. “I’ve matured a lot since I’ve been here, and I’m just trying to help them mature before I leave.” Perhaps nobody’s more familiar with the road they’re on right now than Thompson—her freshman season she missed two months with injury, lost the CIF title game, and won a state championship. If Poly wins tomorrow, she’ll have the same experience her senior year. Laughing, she says, “Yeah, it’s like a big cycle.” On Saturday, three years and three days after Thompson, Buggs, and these Jackrabbits won their first state title, that cycle may have a happy ending.
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