GETTING TO KNOW YOU
Burnt Hills Girl’s Lacrosse Head Coach Katie Kerner misses out on first season at the helm of the Spartans
BURNT HILLS, NY» Katie Kerner’s collegiate lacrosse career was not what she expected it to be.
After struggling with injuries through her four years, she now has a unique perspective on wishing she could be on the field, even though circumstances prevented it.
The Shenendehowa alumni and LeMoyne 2018 national champion was named the girls’ lacrosse head coach at Burnt Hill-Ballston Lake High School prior to the start of the 2020 season. She never expected that she wouldn’t coach a game during her first season leading the varsity program.
“Getting this news is heartbreaking. As a recent college graduate, I see it everywhere. I’ve talked to my former teammates at LeMoyne who lost their season. It’s tough. As coaches, there’s nothing we can do or say to
give the girls what they deserve,” Kerner said.
“All we can do is be there for them and try to make the best out of the times.”
The coaching position at Burnt Hills has faced some turnover the past few years and Kerner is hoping to be a fixture. While she does have the perspective of a younger student-athlete, she also spoke about the coaches who helped her over her lacrosse career.
“When some of my friends from college congratulated me about getting this coaching job, they were saying you’re so lucky to be coached by the best, and that’s what I plan on doing. I had Kathy Taylor at LeMoyne and I learned so much from her, she was born for this game,” Kerner said. She continued. “I learned that I was so much stronger and so much faster than I ever thought I was. That I had so much more in me to give and Coach Taylor helped show me how to find that. That’s something that I plan on bringing to these girls. I want to find the best in every individual athlete.”
Kerner elaborated on the importance of having a female head coach.
“At a young age, having a female coach can be extremely helpful. These past few years the girls at Burnt Hills haven’t had a female coach. Not to say things would have been better, but I think I’m able to put myself in their shoes in ways that would help them. I was fortunate enough to have two strong female coaches in my life and they helped shape me into the women I am today.”
While the experience of dealing with an injury is different than school being shut down due to a pandemic, Kerner took advantage of her time off the field by getting involved with the One Love Foundation.
In 2018, the year of LeMoyne’s national championship, Kerner won the Yeardley Reynolds Love (YRL) Unsung Hero Award, chosen by the One Love foundation. The award celebrates the accomplishments of student-athletes who help their teams on and off the field. Each year, six student-athletes are chosen from men’s and women’s Division I, II and III lacrosse programs for their athleticism, community service, leadership, kindness and sportsmanship.
“The organization is all about educating young people about healthy relationships. It’s been brought to high schools and colleges all over,” Kerner said.
When thinking back to her time at Shen, the outcome of games isn’t at the forefront of Kerner’s memory. Kerner reminisces about her friendships, the hard work, and the experience of learning and growing.
“When I look back at my memories, I’m not thinking about a lacrosse game or field hockey game, I’m looking at the friendships that I made and the memories that we had. In high school, that’s really when you learn how to be a good teammate,” she said.
She’s hoping her players have been able to form new memories through a virtual season this year.
“I wrote journals when I was in high school and I still have them. You never mention what you did in school. You mention what you did in practice, a new drill that you learned,” she said.
“I sat and watched the clock tick until ninth period was up and it was time to go practice. I think they’ve lost more than just the season, they’ve lost structure and that’s one of the hardest things, especially at their age.”