Just a year and a half after taking over the Bobcats' swimming and diving teams, Kelly was named the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference Women's Coach of the Year.

"I've only been coaching here about a year and a half, so to get coach of the year was a surprise," Kelly said.

Kelly, who is the daughter of Tom and Tami Kelly of Olanta, was hired as a graduate assistant during the 2007-08 season, but took over head coaching duties in January of 2008 after the previous coach left.

The 2003 Clearfield graduate took over the program with just seven men and six women on the team with the hopes of turning the team into a solid contender.

Kelly, who swam four years at Clarion before graduating Magna Cum Laude in 2007 with a bachelors degree in psychology with a minor in social work, said that her first year was trying, but good experience.

"We were trying to keep up morale," she said. "We just tried to make sure that we kept all of the individuals we had.

"That was one of the problems the last coach had, and we were really trying to make sure we kept everyone so we could continue building."

Since Kelly was thrown into the head coach's position, she didn't have a lot of experience running practices. So she relied on her former college coach at Clarion University as well as sets she remembered while swimming for Clearfield head coach Jackie Morrison.

"I actually use some of her sets," Kelly said. "I had a little trouble getting her email through the school. I was trying to do a little recruiting, too. But, I used practices that I remembered from high school. I also used my coach from Clarion for advice."

The advice paid off because Kelly doubled the size of her squad in her first full year as head coach to a total of 30 swimmers.

The Bobcats also put on a good showing at the recent AMCC championship meet in Grove City.

The women's team finished second, just six points behind winner Penn State Behrend. The men's team took third.

"I was very proud of everyone," Kelly said. "When it came down to it, they put in all the effort and hard work. The girls finished six points out of first place. Plus, I had two girls that won three individual events."

All of the success has also caused Kelly to reconsider her career path. Kelly, who is a graduate student in the masters program for school counseling, says she isn't sure if she will stay in coaching or follow a counseling career.

She definitely wants to continue helping Frostburg State develop, but would also consider other coaching offers.

"I would like to help to continue to see it grow," she said. "I would like to see the program be around for a long time.

"I am just going to have to wait and see. I wanted to learn from a GA position. I didn't really expect to be a head coach. But, getting this opportunity changed my thoughts. I'm leaning more towards coaching now."

Whatever Kelly decides, it's clear she will be successful in whatever she does.