Rosemark senior Jordan Allen signs a volleyball scholarship with Christian Brothers University Wednesday afternoon in the TRA gym. Also pictured are, from left, front, Natalie Allen, mother; Brandon Allen, father; and, back, Kade Allen, brother. Photo by Jeff Ireland
Two weeks into Jordan Allen’s sophomore volleyball season she tore the anterior cruciate ligament in her left knee and missed the rest of the season.
“She was going to be a big part of our team that year,” said Tipton-Rosemark volleyball coach Amy Weatherington. “It was just devastating for her. She was crushed because she knew we were going to be depending on her a lot as a player and that does a lot mentally to a kid.”
“To have an injury like that hit me really hard, but a week after my surgery I wanted to see how fast I could get back,” Allen, now a senior, said. “I was testing myself to see how fast I could get back.”
Allen recovered soon enough to play at the end of her sophomore basketball season a few months later, played both sports during her junior and senior years and excelled in both.
All that hard work and success culminated Wednesday afternoon when she signed a volleyball scholarship with Christian Brothers University.
“Once I visited it I saw it was a place I would fit into,” Allen said. “Honestly, I was looking for a college further way, but once senior year started I was kind of like, ‘I’m going to miss more than I thought was going to miss’ so being close to home was important.”
Allen, who played middle hitter primarily at TRA, received all-district and all-region honors multiple times and was the region MVP her senior year. She was also a key player on the TRA basketball team, helping the Lady Rebels reach the state semifinals in 2020.
Weatherington raved about Allen’s ability to put a serious injury behind her and find success.
“She came back with a vengeance,” Weatherington said. “She’s such a determined young lady she wasn’t going to let anything get in her way of coming back stronger than she ever was.”
