Weekly Cover: Kenzie Kent’s Second Chance

After the U.S. won gold, Kent had to make choices about her future in the U.S. system. But first, she stepped off the sidelines and onto the field for Athletes Unlimited, finishing in the top 20 in a league of 99 players.

That only sharpened her vision. She was going to try out again for the next national team.

“I felt like I was doing really well in AU,” she said. “I was like, ‘I’m going to try and at least see. I’ll devote the next year to training hard, committing to it and buying in, and see how the first few training camps go.’ They went pretty well.”

As talks of the next training team events in 2024 materialized, Kent was excited to attend. For more than just competition, too. A familiar name, Walker-Weinstein, had taken the helm, with her mother joining the staff to manage operations. Treanor, who coached Kent at Boston College in 2019 and was one of the vets to lead the U.S. to gold in 2022, was also on board.

“It’s a special staff to play for,” Kent said. “I’ve known Acacia forever, and I just love the way she coaches. She’s doing an incredible job with the team, making the players believe in themselves.”

And Mom? She’s softening.

“In college, she was definitely harder on me the first couple of years,” Kent said. “Now, it’s more just empowerment and encouraging.”

Indeed, Jen Kent rarely sees the mistakes these days.

“I don’t see her more in terms of a specific shot but just her joy in playing and how much people like to play with her,” she said.

Kent didn’t give her mother much to criticize. She was nearly flawless at the training camp in June.

“Her skill set is off the charts,” Walker-Weinstein said. “Everything looks so easy, and it’s not. It’s very difficult. But she is so controlled, well-trained and disciplined. She’s made very few errors.”

What’s old is new again. In true Kent fashion, after the U.S. field team camp she immediately shifted focus to sixes — the discipline that will be played in The World Games next month in Chengdu, China, and in the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics.

“Those of us who attended both camps were laughing a bit because there’s no shot clock for field,” Kent said. “In field, we’re trying to work the clock for the best shot, whereas in sixes, you just have to go right away. It was a little bit of an adjustment, but that’s the fun part of it.”

Who better to go from one discipline to another than a two-sport Division I All-American. And frankly, who better for sixes than a one-time collegiate hockey superstar?

“Kenzie is incredibly dynamic,” said Lindsey Munday, the U.S. Women’s Sixes National Team and USC head coach who met Kent as a high schooler while coaching Northwestern camps in Boston. “She can pass, feed, dodge and get shots off in tight spaces. And with sixes, you need people who can play defense, read and react incredibly smart. Kenzie gets better every day.”

The news got better each day, too. On June 16, Kent found out she made the PALA roster, competing to qualify for the 2026 world championship. The next day, she learned she made the sixes roster.

Three years after falling just short of her national team dream, Kent will be one of 12 players representing the United States when The World Games 2025 lacrosse competition takes place Aug. 7-11 in Chengdu. The sixes team will hold a staging camp Aug. 1-3 in Los Angeles prior to traveling overseas.

“It just means everything,” Kent said. “Being an alternate is bittersweet. You’re so close to being able to experience everything, aside from playing. A lot of hard work paid off. I hope it shows others that it doesn’t matter your journey getting onto the team. For players who maybe didn’t make it this time, there’s always a window to make the team.”

And a higher ceiling than you think.

“To me, I think she’s reaching her peak, and it’s very cool,” Walker-Weinstein said. “Now, I hope that she wins a gold medal because I want Kenzie to win on the biggest stage.”