This week’s campus celebrity didn’t spend Spring Break on a beach, instead she was inside on the basketball court with the Queen Bees at the National Tournament. Junior Katie Jensen has played the post position for the Bees for the last two seasons. The Lena, Ill., native came to Ambrose because of the small campus atmosphere and to play basketball without it becoming too time consuming.
Outside of basketball, the Biology and Chemistry major in involved in Habitat for Humanity, Dance Marathon, Biology club, Tri Beta and Phi Eta Sigma. Jensen’s dream job is to become a family doctor in a small town.
“I grew up in a rural town of about 3,000 people, and I have really come to know all of the staff at our hometown clinic. When I visit my doctor, I feel genuinely cared for and want others to have the same experience that I grew up with,” Jensen said.
Currently Jensen looks forward to her internship at Genesis Family Medical Clinic where she job shadows family care physicians. The national tournament was what she looked forward to the most this year, but now that that is over she looks forward to her internship and the great learning experience it has provided her with.
Jensen credits her parents as her biggest role models.
“They always work hard and are genuinely good people. They have set great examples for me in their own ways over the years,” she said. Jensen’s dad played basketball in high school and his team went to the state tournament which became her dream. Although her team never won a conference title or earned a trip to the state tournament, she still loved the sport and decided to continue it at Ambrose.
“Last year was my first year that I experienced a winning season, but we came up short with the conference championship. This year, our team finally was able to win the conference championship. The feeling of finally being a part of a conference championship team is indescribable,” Jensen said.
She credits choosing to play basketball in college as the best decision she has made because she has gained many friends and learned a number of life lessons.
Jensen lives by the motto “Rome wasn’t built in a day.” Three things you didn’t know about Jensen are that she has four state medals from track and field, she used to work at McDonald’s and has completed two tough mudders.
Even though the final buzzer has rung on this season, one can be sure to see Jensen back on the court next season working to help her team get back to the national tournament and a winning season.