JTV Sports Quick Focus: Kerley Shows Versatility in All Sports at EJHS

By Jeff Steers
JTV Sports

(January 28, 2022 2:33 PM) It only seems reasonable that East Jackson High School basketball player Mariah Kerley’s AAU basketball team is called the Naturals. 

Kerley, a freshman, will play five sports for the Trojans this school year and has also been a soccer player, competitive cheerleader, and football player in the past.

In other words, she is a natural athlete.

But basketball is her true love and it shows on the court. Kerley is one of the leading scorers and rebounders for East Jackson as they are turning the program around.

EJHS is 8-3 overall on the season and 3-1 in the Cascades Conference. 

“I found that I had a connection to basketball at an early age,” Kerley said. “My brothers all played the game and I wanted to do just as well as them.”

Kerley has been playing AAU basketball since fourth grade so the transition from junior high basketball to the varsity level was not difficult.

“In elementary school I grew up with a lot of these girls … so I feel very welcomed at the varsity level,” Kerley said. 

She scored 15 points and pulled down a number of rebounds in a 70-4 win over Ann Arbor Central Academy in a lopsided game at home on Thursday. The Trojans scored 55 points in the first half and could have scored 100 in the game.

“We just needed to slow down and work on our plays,” Kerley said of the non-conference win. 

East Jackson may be the second-best team in the conference behind the front-runners from Grass Lake. The Warriors defeated the Trojans earlier in the season.

“We have gotten a lot better since then,” Kerley said. “We have to be on our game (next time) and finish at the rim next time around.”