Coming into the 2019-20 women’s basketball season, there were added expectations placed on redshirt sophomore guard Katie Jekot. Jekot was the top returning scorer and has taken on the role as a leader of a young Hawk’s roster.

“I think coming in to this season there was a little bit of pressure,” Jekot said. “But after it was like alright, have fun. You know how to play you have been doing it for a year now. I have been here three years. So I definitely felt I needed to take initiative out there during practices and during games to help out the younger girls.”

So far, Jekot has been successful. She has racked up a Big 5 Player of the Week award while leading the team in scoring with 10.8 points per game.

“She worked hard in the offseason,” Head Coach Cindy Griffin said. “She is in the best shape she has been in. Last year she was coming off of an injury and learning how to play. Her experience has really helped her as far as how to approach this year and the expectations as the returning leading scorer knowing she was going to be the target of most people’s defenses.”

While Katie may be the most recent Jekot to pick up Big 5 hardware, she isn’t the first. Her older sister Kelly Jekot played for Villanova University the past two seasons and is currently in the midst of transferring to Pennsylvania State University.

Katie Jekot will soon be joined in Philadelphia by her younger sister Julie Jekot as well, who is a junior in high school and is committed to La Salle University. Katie Jekot also thinks her youngest sister, Jill Jekot, will begin to be recruited once she starts high school basketball next year.

Katie Jekot has spent most of her upbringing alongside just Kelly Jekot. The two played Catholic Youth Organization (CYO) basketball together growing up and excelled together in high school, Katie functioning as the facilitator while Kelly was the shooter. Katie Jekot would finish her career at Cumberland Valley High School with three consecutive state championships.

“We were raised as a basketball family,” Kelly Jekot said. “We were rough with each other. But overall I think we were helpful. Even though she is younger than me, I’ve looked up to her in a lot of ways. Growing up we leaned on each other a lot. It was a lot of fun.”

When it came time for Katie Jekot to commit to college, she held an offer from Villanova and had an opportunity to reunite with Kelly Jekot. She decided against it and committed to St. Joe’s instead.

“I’ll let her do her own thing in college and I’ll do my own thing,” Kelly Jekot said. “We are still close enough though that it is like 10 minutes away and I can go over there and we can have lunch or grab dinner. It was still a good fit for the both of us to go to different schools.”

To Kelly, that decision spoke a lot to Katie’s personality.

“It shows a lot of maturity and how competitive she is,” Kelly Jekot said. “Choosing St. Joe’s was the best decision she could have made. She’s been doing great there and has become a leader this year. I’m just super happy that worked out for her.”

While Katie Jekot has been relied upon this year as a scorer, it is her defense that stands out to Griffin.

“Katie is in her best element when she is guarding the best offensive player on the other team,” Griffin said. “She takes it personal, she takes it as a challenge and I think that is when she is at her best.”

For Kelly Jekot, this style of play is nothing new.

“Defensively she always guarded the best player growing up,” Kelly Jekot said. “That was her thing.”

Griffin said that success on both sides of the floor is the ultimate sign of a good player. She said Katie Jekot sees the two sides of the ball, offense and defense, being codependent.

“I just go out there and try to give it my all,” Katie Jekot said. “I take a lot of pride in defense. I feel that offense starts with defense. So when you get stops, it produces more for your offense.”

For Griffin, the most exciting part about Katie Jekot is that she has potential.

“She is still evolving as a player,” Griffin said. “She isn’t even halfway through her sophomore year. She is still young in a lot of ways. She is getting better everyday with communication and attention to detail.”