Jessica Keller

Kansas State

Sep 18 (Thu)

7 p.m.

Position:
Goalkeeper
Height:
6-0
Class:
Senior
Hometown:
Highlands Ranch, Colo.
High School:
ThunderRidge
Prev School:
University of Miami

2003 Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week (Nov. 4)
2003 Big 12 All-Newcomer Team
2004 Wake Forest/adidas Classic All-Tournament
2004 Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week (Oct. 27)
2004 Big 12 All-Academic first team
2004 second-team All-Big 12
2005 Big 12 All-Academic first team
2005 Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week (Oct. 11)
2005 NSCAA second-team All-Central Region

SENIOR (2005): Keller capped her CU career by making 16 starts and posting a 1.11 GAA and .742 save percentage as the Buffs went 8-5-2 with her in goal. As a result, she earned second-team all-region. She also posted four solo shutouts and three combined shutouts with teammate Kirstin Radlinski. She posted back-to-back shutouts against Detroit and Pittsburgh on Sept. 16 and 18. She later blanked Oklahoma State in a 1-0 victory on Sept. 30, and made three saves in a 2-0 shutout against Texas on Oct. 7.

JUNIOR (2004): Keller played all but five minutes last season, having gone the distance in 22 contests in ’04, bringing her two year total to 39. She had a school record un-scored upon streak that lasted 465 minutes between the 35th minute of Baylor (Oct. 15) to the 56th of Missouri (Nov. 3). She led the league in shutouts (11), shutouts per game (0.52), is second in save percentage (.856) and goals against average (0.70) in all games played. With 12 shutouts, her school-record career total is 21. She owns all but one goalkeeping statistic, saves (third with 159). Against ranked opponents (and those receiving votes) she went 0-4-1 with a 2.11 gaa. She was named Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week on Oct. 27 after shutting down Oklahoma 4-0 and Oklahoma State 1-0 against former teammate Jeanne Rankin in the latter and improving the Buffs from seventh to fifth in the league standings. The wins bettered her own single season and career school records when she picked up her ninth and 10th shutouts. Her 180 minutes that weekend upped her career minutes to overtake former Buff Sloane Cox (1997-98, 3,140 minutes) as CU’s all-time keeper in the statistic. She registered a career high 11 saves vs. Missouri then 12 vs. A&M in the Big 12 Tournament. Keller picked up her first career point when her shot against Missouri was saved and rebounded to Tricia Regan who scored on the put back in the Big 12’s opening round. In league statistics she led all keepers in shutouts (all games and league only) and was top five in every other category.

SOPHOMORE (2003): After just a single season, the Big 12 All-Newcomer Team keeper owns the CU single season and career shutouts mark with nine and single season goals against average mark (0.67) amongst starters and the single season and career wins record with 14. She received her first starting nod against Georgia in the season opening weekend, and after coming off the bench at Wyoming, she started 15 straight. She was named the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week on Nov. 4 when she stopped six Nebraska shots in CU’s first-ever win over the Huskers, 3-1, in the regular season finale for both teams and held NU to just one goal for the third time in the series. Against ranked opponents, she went 2-1-1 and had a 1.40 gaa. In all games played, she led all Big 12 keepers in GAA (0.67), shutouts per game (0.50), was second in shutouts (9) and third in save percentage (.844). In spring play she had five shutouts.

AT MIAMI: The Hurricanes were 7-3-1 overall, 3-0-1 in Big East play in 2002, but ankle surgery limited Keller’s game time, forcing her to miss the 2002 season.

HIGH SCHOOL: A two-year captain, ThunderRidge was 72-2-2 with Keller on the pitch and winners of the 1999 and 2000 4A State Championship and the 2002 5A title after a runner up finish in ?01. She was a four-time first-team all-Centennial League selection and named first-team all-5A state (alongside CU teammate Fran Munnelly) as a senior after being named to the honorable mention lists as a sophomore and junior. As the Grizzlies starting keeper, she allowed just three goals en route to Thunder Ridge’s unblemished 17-0 season her senior year, and had seven saves in blanking Chatfield in the ’02 5A title tilt. She played her club ball for Real National and was a four-time state cup finalist and two-time state cup MVP. She was also a four-year member of the Colorado State Olympic Development Program (ODP) and a two-year member of the Region IV team.

IN THE CLASSROOM: The Miami transfer is a communication major at Colorado and turned in an in-season Dean’s List effort in 2003 and will carry a 3.367 cum into her junior season.

PERSONAL: Jessica Leigh Keller was born June 14, 1984 in Littleton, she is the daughter of Mike and Katie Keller of Highlands Ranch. Her older brother Geoff is a ’05 graduate of CU.