By Rich Palzewic
Sports Editor
GREEN BAY – Green Bay Preble girls’ basketball player Kendall Renard had lots of choices where she wanted to attend college.
In the end, the 6-foot-3 Renard chose to stay close to home and play for head coach Kevin Borseth and the Green Bay Phoenix.
“Green Bay stood out to me,” said Renard, who is the daughter of Dean and Anne. “Green Bay has a strong community of supporters who follow Phoenix basketball. I visited plenty of other Division I schools, but Green Bay is where I want to be.”
Other Division I suitors included Toledo, IUPUI, Illinois State, Northern Illinois, Miami of Ohio and North Dakota State.
Green Bay head coach Kevin Borseth is an intense coach who said he expects his players to put forth their best effort every game.
“Since I was young, I have followed the Phoenix,” said Renard, who describes herself as dedicated, passionate and fun. “Coach Borseth is passionate about the game, too, coaches winning teams and knows what he’s doing. I’m excited to see what happens in the future with him as my coach.”
Renard, who plans to study nursing or human biology at Green Bay, has an older sister, Karley, and a younger brother, Austin, who is a sophomore at Preble.
“Karley is almost 20 and attending UW-Whitewater,” Renard said. “She played some basketball, volleyball and softball. Austin plays baseball and basketball.”
Before the season began, Preble head coach Jim Doell said Renard improved her game over the summer and came into camp in great shape.
“Kendall gives us great rebounding,” said Doell after an early-season practice. “She was the top rebounder in the conference last season by far. I tell her, ‘If you don’t rebound well, you don’t play well.’ She has bought into that.”
Renard was named first-team all-conference after her junior season, averaging 17.8 points and 11.5 rebounds a game.
“Coach Doell is fun to play for,” Renard said. “He knows his stuff and pushes everyone on the team to be the best they can be.”
The Hornets have another Division I player on the roster in junior Carley Duffney, who has verbally committed to play her college ball at South Dakota.
The two are averaging more than 35 points a game combined in the team’s first three games.
“Carley and I get along well and are great friends,” said Renard. “We are a duo on the court, and we know what each other is going to do. It’s nice having someone of her caliber on the floor with me.”
Renard has dabbled in softball and volleyball in her time at Preble, but will stick solely with basketball during her senior year.
“I had fun playing softball and volleyball, but I enjoyed concentrating on basketball this past fall sports season,” she said. “I worked on my athleticism – it’s helped me in the end.”
Renard said her most memorable sports moment was committing to Green Bay.
In a Nov. 14 ceremony at Preble High School, Renard and six other seniors inked their National Letters of Intent to continue their athletic and academic careers at the collegiate level.