Rhoads twins will play at Ky. college
SLIPPERY ROCK — Karly and Kourtney Rhoads had a simple message to college basketball recruiters: We are a package deal.
Several schools showed interest in one of the Slippery Rock High girls basketball twins. Very few schools were interested in both.
"There was never a thought of going different places," Karly said. "Going to the same school was the most important thing to us."
The twins stuck to their guns. As schools came calling for one or the other, they continued to express their desire to play together for four more years.
As the months dragged on and the interest began to dwindle, Karly and Kourtney wondered if their dream of playing together in college would become a reality.
"We thought about it," Kourtney said. "We wondered what it would be like to play at different schools. We're just glad it worked out."
The stars aligned at an unusual place. Kentucky Wesleyan, a small Division II school in Owensboro, Ky., with an enrollment of fewer than 1,000 students, came up with the best offer.
The twins jumped at it as if they were going for a rebound.
Now, Karly and Kourtney can breath easier with the knowledge that they will be together on the basketball court — and off it — for at least four more years.
The fact that the twins fell in love with the Kentucky Wesleyan campus and basketball program was a bonus.
"There were a lot of schools that had only one scholarship, so we weren't really in good shape there," Kourtney said. "(At Kentucky Wesleyan) everyone knows each other because it's such a small campus. It's like a family."They run and shoot, so, that's always good for us."Karly and Kourtney are different players for the Rockets.Karly is the ball handler and the slasher, getting most of her points on drives to the hoop or jumpers off the dribble.Last season, she reached 1,000 points in her career as a junior.Kourtney is the pure shooter. Deadly from behind the arc, she led Butler County with 56 3-pointers last season.Kourtney is closing in on her own 1,000th career point.Their differences on the court might have helped them reach their goal to play together in college, said Slippery Rock coach Adrienne Orris."They just have that connection on the court, so I'm sure that will continue," Orris said. "If any twins could be recruited together, it was them. They play differently. They aren't the same person."Despite living and playing together, the twins are close off the court."We are best friends," Kourtney said. "We've always gotten along. We couldn't imagine being apart."Orris, who has coached the twins for three-plus years, helped convince Kentucky Wesleyan coach Ron Williams to recruit them both.At first, Orris said Williams was hesitant to bring both Karly and Kourtney into his program, which is off to a 7-3 start this season and is 51-45 in the last three-plus seasons."I'm happy they are going to school together," the Rockets coach said. "When it comes down to it, you are only in college for four years. You have to make it what you want it to be."
