Jenna went to Caulfield Campus from 2005 to 2006 and was a mainstay in the Opals because of her abilities to both create points and defend them, but she had a rocky start to her international career with injury robbing her of a spot on the 2005 FIBA U19 World Championships team. She was picked for the 2007 FIBA U21 World Championships to make her international debut and Jenna didn’t look back.
Olympic Participation
- London 2012 Olympics: Member of the team that won bronze, beating Russia in the play-off.
- Tokyo 2020 Olympics: The Opals played Belgium (L 85-70), China (L 76-74), and Puerto Rico (W 96-69) in the group phase. In the quarter-finals, they squared off against the USA, losing to the eventual Olympic champions 79-55 and finishing 8th in the tournament.
- Performance: Jenna captained the side and played in all four matches, averaging 8.5 points, 3 rebounds, and 2.3 assists in 20.9 minutes per game.
Professional Career
- WNBL Career:
- Best Season: At 26, Jenna enjoyed the best season of her WNBL career in 2013-14, claiming a fourth WNBL All-Star Five honor in five seasons.
- Career Highlights: In her WNBL career, just shy of 300 games, Jenna became a 3x WNBL champion, 5x WNBL All-Star, and Life Member.
- International Debut: Grabbing her Opals start at the 2010 FIBA world titles after earning her first WNBL All-Star Five honor with the Melbourne Boomers, Jenna began attracting overseas attention.
- WNBA Contract: The Los Angeles Sparks offered her a WNBA contract for the 2011 season.
International Success
- 2018 Commonwealth Games: Won gold for the Opals.
- 2018 FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup: Won silver in Spain, serving as team captain. It was the best finish at a World Cup since winning gold in 2006.
- 2019 FIBA Asia Cup: Added another bronze medal to her cabinet.
Retirement
After 81 senior appearances for the Opals spanning across 12 years, Jenna announced her retirement from both international and national basketball in March 2022.
Image Credit: Australian Olympics
