Vindy Spring Athletes: Isabella Kelty

It’s not a coincidence that Isabella Kelty’s excellent varsity debut coincided with the Canfield girls lacrosse program getting off to a fast start to varsity life.

Girls lacrosse was sanctioned by the OHSAA as a varsity sport for the first time this spring.

Canfield’s program had previously existed as a club team, which Kelty picked up the sport as an eighth grader last year. “When I started off, it was pretty difficult. A lot of our players weren’t experienced at the beginning and I wasn’t either,” Kelty said. “We started out in our coaches back yard and now we’re at Canfield High School and that’s great.”

The Cardinals were one of four area schools to start a team and they were the only school to post a winning record at 9-7. Their season ended in the opening round of the playoffs with a 9-8 loss to Kenston.

Kelty, a freshman, was the Mahoning Valley’s only player named to the all-region second team. She led her team in nearly every offensive category. In 15 games, she scored 67 goals and collected seven assists. She averaged 4.63 points a game and boasted a shooting percentage of 54.03 percent.

“It was a tough sport to learn, but we practiced a lot. We practiced after school. We practiced at home and we all put in the same time,” Kelty said.

“I had help from our defenders, our midfielders and my side of the field.”

She has another three years to improve her stick skills and continue working communicating with her teammates.

Brian Dzenis