Jacobs set for enshrinement into CYO Basketball Hall of Fame
She has become one of the premier girls basketball coaches in the area, and Kristin Voorhees Jacobs can trace the roots of her love of the game to the Mercer County CYO.
“Playing for St. Greg’s was really the first experience of feeling pride in representing the school that I attended and being a part of something bigger,’’ said Jacobs, who is being inducted into the Mercer County CYO Basketball Hall of Fame this Sunday.
“I started when I was in the fourth grade and we played the JV games at Junior 4,’’ added Jacobs, the Steinert High girls coach.
It was quite a beginning as one of her mom’s favorite stories is when young Kristin scored a basket for the other team and another from her seat.
Fortunately, those days didn’t last long, and Voorhees Jacobs became one of the top players in the CYO and then in high school and college.
The induction ceremonies start at 3 p.m. at Nottingham Ballroom. She will be joined by Ralph Chiarello, Lou DeMille, Fred Dumont, Herman English, Rashawn Glenn, Jim Haggerty Sr., Peter Kelly, Joe Hejda, Deb Zsenak Hart, Rosemary LaMacchia, Steven Maczinko, Alexa Millas, Don Walsh Sr. and Dawn Wolfsgruber as an inductee.
“I get to see a lot of different leagues throughout the season,’’ said Jacobs. “I try to get over to St. Greg’s with their full slate of games. My nephew played last season, so it gave me a good reason to get over there. I coach an AAU team and many of my players come from the local CYO teams. It is just good competitive basketball and it is helping keep basketball, especially girls basketball alive and well.’’
After a great CYO career at St. Greg’s, Voorhees Jacobs was a three-sport athlete at Steinert and was named Spartan of the Year. She played basketball for all four years at West Chester where she was a captain and named to the All-PSAC team.
Jacobs also coached at West Chester and Slippery Rock in college and locally at Stuart and West Windsor-Plainsboro North.
She is also a member of the Steinert Athletic Hall of Fame
“As a coach, you try to take something away from every experience,’’ said Jacobs. “As a player a lot of the time you are living in the moment. I learned a lot about winning, the right way. Being a good sport and at the same time being competitive. I learned about respect, respecting the game and those you are competing against and those who are trying to teach it to you.’’
Many former CYO stars like Voorhees Jacobs became great high school players and teammates of Jacobs in AAU such as Kelly Hutchinson, Andrea Povia, Maya Jackson, Jen Reese and Kristie Roche.
“The CYO is really where I learned and was taught the game and that winning and respecting your school mattered,’’ Jacobs said. “I’m appreciative of this honor and a chance to share it with my family.’’
An honor well deserved.