North Central College Athletics

As part of an increasingly rare breed of collegiate athletes to have a substantial impact on two separate sports, Kris Kalivas ’98 excelled on the basketball court as well as the softball field by treating each sport as a learning experience for the other.

A Second Team All-College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) selection in both sports as a freshman in 1994-1995, Kalivas went on to become one of North Central’s most accomplished athletes in both venues and viewed her dual participation as an asset rather than a hindrance.

“I think doing both sports definitely made me better,” she said. “I was able to learn from the different coaching styles that I was exposed to. Each one gave me a break from the other and exposed me to a new group of teammates and  a new atmosphere, and it left me refreshed and ready to go for the next  season.” Kalivas went on to become a four-time All-CCIW honoree in both sports, as well as a three-time All-Region selection in softball.

She graduated as the softball program’s career record holder in four categories and still holds North Central’s career record for batting average (.424). She also established three single-season softball records and remains the program’s standard bearer for runs scored in a single season (56, accomplished in 1995). She was the eighth player in the history of the Cardinals’ women’s basketball program to score 1,000 career points and currently ranks 10th in school history with 1,129 while ranking second in career assists (378) and steals (256).

Kalivas was able to excel in both sports while adjusting to the higher caliber of play at the collegiate level, a trait she credits to her softball coach, North Central Athletics Hall of Famer Jim Kulawiak and her basketball coach for her first three years, Kim Hansen. “I definitely think there were challenges in both sports, but fortunately I had great coaches who prepared me for that,” she said. “Coach K did such a great job not only teaching us about softball, but preparing us for the real world. Everything he wanted us to do, he was such a  great example because he lives it himself. His expectations were very clear, and you really wanted to play hard for him and do well for him.

“With Coach Hansen in basketball, it was the same. Her level of intensity wasn’t quite as high, but her expectations were definitely high. She was a teacher on and off the court. Both coaches helped me develop who I am and influenced who I am now.”

Kalivas served as the head coach for both girls basketball and softball at Waubonsie Valley High School in Aurora from 2003-2009, winning four Illinois High School Association  (IHSA) regional championships in basketball, before moving to Metea Valley High School in 2009 to become its first  varsity girls basketball coach. She became the Mustangs’ head varsity softball coach a year later.

“I definitely tell stories to my own players about nightmare practices that we went through in college, and they laugh because  they’ve been through some of them as well,” she said. “I know that my coaching styles in both basketball and  softball reflect what I learned at North Central.”