Kelly brings high profile to Lake County

The last time Ken Kelly coached a college baseball team, his basketball counterpart at Georgetown was John Thompson.

Now, John Thompson III paces the sidelines during Hoyas basketball games.

So where is Kelly now?

More than 20 years after leaving Georgetown, Kelly is back coaching college baseball. He accepted the head coaching position at the College of Lake County in late December, and he brings his wealth of experience to the Grayslake campus.

"I hadn't thought about coaching in college for a long time," Kelly said. "At first I wasn't sure, but I'm a challenge guy. When I met some of the kids, I liked the possibilities of the program. I'm 57, so if I was going to do it again, this is the time."

Unfortunately for Kelly, he's getting a taste of perhaps the worst spring in recent memory. The Lancers have only been able to practice on their field twice. CLC was undefeated in three exhibition games in Puerto Rico in late February, but the Lancers have struggled since. They take a 3-8 record into their scheduled home game at 2 p.m. Tuesday against Elgin.

"I can say that in the first four months I've played for him, he's the most knowledgeable coach I've been around," said sophomore outfielder Matt Mulvaney, a Grayslake Central graduate. "He's exposed us to all the different aspects of the game. It's above and beyond what I've been exposed to."

Kelly, who was a catcher at Dartmouth College, coached at Georgetown from 1977 to 1986. Despite a limited budget and no scholarships, Kelly turned the Hoyas into a perennial top 30 team.

"A lot of the credit goes to John Thompson for putting Georgetown on the national map (athletically)," Kelly said. "We were able to dovetail off of that."

Kelly said he worked close to 20 hours a day to build the Georgetown program, and after the 1986 season he was ready to take his career in a new direction. Although he worked a number of different jobs in business and did graduate work, he stayed close to the game through coaching clinics, coaching youth and high school baseball and starting a Grand Slam Franchise.

Kelly also spent a great deal of time watching his son, Thomas, a sophomore at Loyola Academy, play sports. Now that his son is in high school, Kelly believed it was the right time to return to the collegiate level.

"I wouldn't have done this two years ago," he said.

The Lancers were ready for their trip to Puerto Rico that Kelly organized on short notice. Mulvaney hit a grand slam and the entire team played well in posting three consecutive victories.

Finding the form they displayed in Puerto Rico is the Lancers' current challenge.

"We gave a glimpse of how good we can be in Puerto Rico," Mulvaney said. "We took a step backward once we came home. We're still making progress, though, and (striving) to get back to the team we were in Puerto Rico."

CLC was hit pretty hard by graduation and transfers to four-year schools, but the Lancers still have plenty of talent. A strong point should be their pitching staff.

Freshman lefty Devon VanBrooker will receive a lot of work at the top of the rotation.

"He's a definite Division I prospect," Kelly said. "He's learning how to pitch. As he learns to use his size to his advantage, he can become a dominant pitcher."

Freshman Travis Pederson (Wauconda) and sophomores Adam Ketzner (Mundelein) and Adam Bulter (Grayslake Central) also have impressed Kelly. Although the pitching arm of sophomore Phil Sims (Waukegan) is not at full strength, he has played some admirable emergency shortstop.

Sophomore Derek Kofoed (Warren) is making the transition to closer.

"It's a lot of pressure, but I like coming in and getting the job done," Kofoed said. "The challenge is definitely fun."

Despite the weather, fun is exactly what Kelly is having.

"I have high energy being back on the baseball field," Kelly said. "I love coaching and being around the kids. If kids in our county are looking at (junior colleges), I want the College of Lake County to be their first choice."