Gilroy High’s leading scorer for girls water polo the past two
seasons has scored a scholarship to Iona College. Senior Jenny
Ailes, an All-Tri-County Athletic League selection this past fall,
has signed a National Letter of Intent to play Division I water
polo for the small private school in New Rochelle, New York.
Gilroy High’s leading scorer for girls water polo the past two seasons has scored a scholarship to Iona College. Senior Jenny Ailes, an All-Tri-County Athletic League selection this past fall, has signed a National Letter of Intent to play Division I water polo for the small private school in New Rochelle, New York.
Located 20 miles north of Manhattan, Ailes said she chose Iona, which has an enrollment under 5,000, after visiting the campus and meeting the players. “I chose it because it’s like a small college and I just relate to a lot of the girls on the team,” she said.
Waiting for a scholarship offer months after the season was complete, Ailes did consider not playing polo in college. But after getting an offer from Gaels coach Brian Kelly, which is funded partially for athletics but more so for academics (Ailes has a 4.0 GPA), the decision was made easy.
“I was possibly willing to give it up, (but) I wasn’t sure if I really wanted to do it,” Ailes said before adding that she would have missed being part of a team environment.
The change of coasts should be made easier by having family close by, as well as a friend. Fellow GHS senior Lauryn Chris will be in New York on a softball scholarship for Canisius. “She’s going to be six hours away but she’ll be where my cousin lives so I can go visit her,” Ailes said.
Leaving for upstate New York in August, with winter only a few months away, Ailes was given one last bit of advice from her future teammates.
“They just said to bring a lot of [sweatpants] and sweatshirts,” Ailes said.
