Jordan Jennings isn’t one to sit around and wait for things to happen.
She’s the kind of person who makes things happen.
Jennings, a Mayfair resident, is a star softball player for MaST Charter, the school she’s attended since kindergarten.
A shortstop by trade, she’s done everything she can to help MaST succeed. She’s played some outfield and even saw some time in the circle as a pitcher.
But the place Jennings excels the most is at the plate, where she is one of the top hitters in the area.
She proved that a few weeks ago when she connected for her 100th hit in her varsity softball career. It’s an incredible feat for any player, but even bigger when you consider Jenning not only has the rest of this year to add to her mark, she’s only a junior so she’ll have an entire senior season to add to those numbers.
“I was very happy, everyone was proud,” said Jennings, who became the first junior in school history to accomplish the feat, but there have been others who reached the 100-hit club. “It wasn’t a goal when I got here. Freshman year, I definitely wouldn’t have thought I’d make it to that point, but after last year and the start of this year, it was a goal.
“It does mean a lot. To see my hard work pay off. And to see I’m contributing to my team. The best part about getting hits is getting wins. I want to help this team, so I try to be as consistent as possible.”
She’s more than doing her part, and the Panthers are excelling.
MaST is 10-5 overall, 6-2 in the Bicentennial Athletic League.
And Jennings is carrying the load. The shortstop has performed incredibly well, hitting .660 with two home runs, 12 stolen bases, 18 runs, 29 hits, 10 doubles and three triples.
She’s also stepped up in other ways.
People expected her to be a star, just as she was during her freshman and sophomore seasons, but this year she has to set an example for her young teammates.
“My role as opposed to last year, I’ve taken more of a leadership role,” Jennings said. “We only have one senior and we have eight or nine juniors. I was named one of the captains this season and I’ve taken the role of helping the underclassmen. I’ve run a few practices and helped my coach with drills we can work on.
“I love it. Normally, I’m more of a reserved person. It’s nice to use my leadership skills during softball.”
It makes sense she’s a strong leader.
She’s been a top player since she arrived and has been working hard, setting a good example for her teammates.
And now that she reached the milestone, she can put her entire focus on helping the Panthers continue their rise in the BAL.
She never worried about reaching the 100-hit plateau, but friends couldn’t help but bring it up. Now, it’s all about the team.
“Personally, it is a great accomplishment, so I’m proud,” Jennings said. “As of recently, I knew I was close so to finally get it was almost relieving in a way. It’s good to know that my hard work outside of school, practice, lifting, has paid off to let me accomplish that goal. But I’m happy I got it, so now I can focus on playing.”
Focus has never been a problem for Jennings, either on the field or in the classroom. And as impressive as the numbers she’s putting up on the field are, they pale in comparison to what she’s doing with her studies.
She maintains a 4.33 grade point average at MaST, and when she’s not there, she heads to Philadelphia Community College, where she takes two classes a semester.
She’s crushing her college courses, too, and by the time she graduates next year, she’ll not only have earned a high school diploma, she’ll have an associate’s degree with a business general.
“It’s hard, definitely when I first started the program, it was difficult,” Jennings said. “You’re devoting a lot of time to homework and whatnot. But as I’ve been in the program longer, it’s gotten a lot easier. I think normally we have cohorts, I work with my classmates in my major. We’ll work on assignments. That made it a lot easier and I’ve learned how to manage my time, it’s taught me time-management skills. When to work on college, work on high school. Practice for high school.”
The focus on business will only help her in the future
“In college, I want to major in marketing or advertising,” said Jennings, who hopes to continue her softball career in college. “At CCP, I took a marketing class and it was the most interesting class I’ve taken so far. When I’m older, I want to work my way up and hopefully be a marketing director, but I’m not entirely sure. I think this will help a lot, though.
“It’ll give me a huge head start and set a good foundation. I know how college courses work, I’ve been in a class with people older than me and I’ve dealt with professors, so it’ll be an easier transition. I wouldn’t say the work is that difficult. It’s different. In high school, you go every day. In college, I’ll go once a week for three or four hours. I love going once a week. Just keep up with the work and you’re fine.”
