GETTING TO KNOW KEELEY QUAN
Hailing from sporting parents in Melbourne’s north-west, Keeley was destined for a sporting future, recognising her mum Jenni, as the biggest influence in her life. Having tried every sport under the sun by the time she turned 7, Keeley was heavily involved in dancing before she picked up a flyer for netball and hasn’t turned back. She was a talented junior, playing in her local 13/U team in her first year. At home, Keeley calls her younger sister, Zara, her best friend. She hasn’t quite caught the netball bug herself (yet), focusing more on swimming and karate. Two older siblings round out the household, with her older sister, Britney, living as a lawyer in Queensland and older brother, Joshua, in the Navy.
Since Year 7, Keeley has attended Maribyrnong Sports College and had a number of high performance coaches including former elite netballers Nicole Richardson, Elouise Southby and Lightning’s own Brooke Littlepage. Currently coached by our 19/U Head Coach, Sarah Myrea, Keeley enjoys being a competitive netball environment 24/7. They have 2 courtwork sessions scheduled each week and have a strength program included as part of their coursework. Starting year 12 has been a challenge in itself this year, trying to balance home life, school life and netball life.
Keeley initially played wing attack and goals as a junior, before transitioning into defence, and has completed a full circle returning to midcourt over the past few years. Her netball came to a halt back in 2017 when she tore her MCL and meniscus playing AFL at school. As a 12 year old, she was considered too young for surgery and waited for her knee to heal naturally, but unfortunately has ongoing issues due to her injury. Since joining the Lightning at the end of last year, Emma Cransberg and her knowledgeable sport science team have focused on strengthening her knee and this has already shown huge improvements.
Keeley has thoroughly enjoyed playing with the Bolts 2 team this season and loves the atmosphere the athletes and support staff bring to training and match night. She can not speak highly enough of our player first focus, ensuring that player welfare comes before all else and is not just about winning games. She has aspirations of playing with our Bolts 1 group, and working towards improving her skills to be selected in our 19/U team next year.
Keeley uses her little spare time to work at Coles to support her shoe addiction. Stored on floating shelves in her bedroom, she has many pairs of expensive Jordans that she has no intention of selling. Outside of netball, her top 3 hobbies are Tik Tok, shopping and selfcare. During Victoria’s Covid lockdown, Keeley deleted all social media and decided to focus on her mental wellbeing. She started by purchasing $5 books from Kmart to teach her about confidence, resilience and self love. She firmly believes that if you are feeling mentally well, then you will feel physically better and go about life with a more positive outlook. She finds the most cleansing thing to do is to go for a walk or sit outside with headphones. Keeley loves to meditate frequently throughout the week to cleanse her mind and feel refreshed. This new found confidence changed her outlook on life, and as a result, has given her a much stronger belief in herself.
Keeley has big life plans, wanting to travel and invest in property. She wants to travel to Macedonia, Greece and Switzerland. Melbourne University Lightning wishes Keeley all the best for the rest of the season and her future endeavours.
