Kyvin Goodin-Rogers, one of the players who was part of the mass exodus from the Kentucky women’s basketball program two years ago, has announced she is quitting the game due to chronic knee pain after one season at Western Kentucky.
In an undated blog post, Goodin-Rogers said the knee pain has become too much to finish her career for the Hilltoppers. Western Kentucky University confirmed Goodin-Rogers’ departure to the Bowling Green Daily News.
“Even though I had planned to play 2 years for her, unfortunately due to my knee pains that didn’t happen,” Goodin-Rogers wrote on her blog K-lyfe.com/myjourney/. “Life works in mysterious ways … Never would I have thought that my basketball career would come to an end so early all because of a knee surgery gone wrong.”
In the blog, Goodin-Rogers said her knee problems began in December of her sophomore year at UK. After missing her entire freshman season at UK after being diagnosed with a pulmonary embolism, she started 15 games as a sophomore, but gradually saw her role diminish as her knee problems worsened. She had surgery in the offseason.
Goodin-Rogers was one of four players to leave the UK program just ahead of the 2015-16 season. Coach Matthew Mitchell explained at the time that each departure was for separate, personal reasons and tried to assure fans and recruits that the transfers were not part of a larger problem.
When she arrived at WKU, Goodin-Rogers told the staff she still had pain after the surgery. They recommended an MRI.
“They began to explain everything that needed to be done ... I then mentioned to them that I already had that done,” Goodin-Rogers wrote. “But according to my records, they also showed everything that needed to be done, that wasn’t done in my first knee surgery. I felt so betrayed. Only half of my surgery was done? Why?”
That led to her second knee surgery in six months. She sat out until December of 2016 due to transfer rules and immediately assumed a starting role for the Toppers. But her knee problems persisted.
She praised her WKU coach, Michelle Clark-Heard, and her teammates for allowing her to be part of a 27-7 season that saw them win the Conference USA title.
“It came to a point in my final season at Western Kentucky that I had to stop practicing for good & only participating in walk thru practices and games,” she wrote.
Goodin-Rogers averaged 8.1 points and 4.1 rebounds in 26 games. She started 25 of those, but was limited to just over 20 minutes per game.
“It all was unreal to me ... I couldn’t stand not practicing with my teammates and at times I felt like they would judge me & I always felt bad for it,” Goodin-Rogers wrote. “Over time I realized how good of teammates and staff I had. They were supportive the whole way & I have yet to figure out how to repay them for their support.”
Coming out of Marion County High School, Goodin-Rogers was ranked as the nation’s No. 59 player by Blue Star Basketball and was ESPN’s 19th-best forward nationwide. A four-time All-State selection, she averaged 12.1 points, 7.8 rebounds, 3.1 steals and 2.4 blocks per game as a senior and was a finalist for the 2013 Kentucky Miss Basketball Award.
Jared Peck: 859-231-1333, @ItSaysHere
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