by Rusty Ellis
Cookeville senior Jordan Gillies took the next step in her academic and athletic career on Friday by signing her national letter of intent to play basketball at Kentucky Wesleyan College next fall.
For Gillies, it’s an excited moment for her to get to make her commitment official.
“Now I don’t have to worry about anything and I get to play ball,” Gillies said. “The first time I went there, I loved it and I really wanted to meet the team before I made the decision. I loved the team and I didn’t want to leave.”
For Gillies, she says that one of the things she loved about the campus was the size.
“I like that it’s small,” Gillies said. “It’s in a great community in Owensboro…I loved everything about it.”
It’s a special day for mom and head coach Jamie Gillies as well, as she got to be with her daughter on every step of this decision.
“As her mom and her coach, I’m really proud of her,” Gillies said. “She’s worked really hard for this…when we went to Kentucky Wesleyan the first time, I had a feeling she was going to go there. I’m glad she went ahead and made this decision.”
As far as what makes it a good fit for the younger Gillies, her coach says the style of play and system should fit her strengths perfectly.
“They play really fast,” Gillies said. “We watched a practice, and it was high energy. She hung out with the team and she really liked them…she was just really excited about (what she saw).”
As far as what she’ll miss about playing at Cookeville, Gillies says it’s going to take some time to get used to playing for new coaches at the next level.
“The hardest part will be not playing for my parents and not playing with my siblings anymore,” Gillies said. “That hasn’t happened since I was in fifth grade…I’m looking forward to getting to see the new experiences in college and how everyone is good there.”
