After playing only one game during her sophomore season, forward Kelly Rae Finley quit the team Monday.
A press release said Finley made this decision “based on personal reasons.” Finley also plans to withdraw from Northwestern at the end of this quarter.
“It’s her decision, and it’s for the best for her,” sophomore center Melissa Miller said.
In her senior year of high school, Street and Smith named her an honorable mention on the Preseason All-America team.
Finley averaged 3.5 points and 2.5 rebounds in 18.3 minutes per game last year.
She played in the Wildcats’ first 13 games, starting eight, before a stress fracture in her left leg sidelined her for the remainder of the season.
Finley was more effective in games she started, averaging 5.0 points and 3.4 rebounds in 22.4 minutes per game.
She poured in her season-high of 14 points and led all Cats scorers against DePaul in NU’s 118-49 loss last Nov. 27. She also recorded four rebounds and two of her five 3-pointers on the year in 26 minutes against the Blue Demons.
In last Friday’s 86-68 loss to the Chicago Challengers, Finley notched two points, two rebounds and an assist in 20 minutes of action off the bench.
“She was a big part of our team,” Miller said. “She brought her own individual abilities to the game and to our team.”
Miller, who played with Finley in high school at The Breck School in Minneapolis, said Finley’s intangibles made her an important player for the Cats.
“She’s a very smart basketball player. She knows the ins and outs, the X’s and O’s like you’d never believe,” Miller said. “We’re going to miss that, just having her direction on the court. That’s hard to replace.”
Miller reserved comment on the reason for Finley’s departure, saying she wanted to protect her former teammate’s privacy.
Finley’s absence makes the already youthful Cats even younger, whittling the number of sophomores on the team to three. The team has only three upperclassmen.
The other five players on NU’s roster are freshmen.
Senior Holly Palin will replace Finley at forward.
Palin was a four-year starting midfielder for the field hockey team. Pallin scored 12 goals in 76 matches throughout her career.
Palin was also a four-year starter on her high school’s basketball team. She led the team in scoring, rebounding in her last three years and was conference player of the year as a senior.
Finley is the fourth player to leave the program prematurely in the last two years under coach Beth Combs. Center Suzanne Morrison was dismissed from the team last February and now plays for Depaul. Guard Alex Mueller left before the start of last season, and guard Breanne Smilie did not return to the team for her junior season.
Combs declined to comment on the matter further than what was already stated on the press release. Finley did not respond to interview requests.
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