For a high schooler from a small, remote town in eastern Washington, Jennifer Stinson Greeny always had rather recognizable reach – and not only when it came to her rebounding ability. The six-foot-two Davenport, Washington local had the sort of moves and mentality that stuck in the minds of spectators for months – or even years – after she left the court. 

Before Greeny’s first year at Davenport High School, the Gorillas had never reached a WIAA-sanctioned State Tournament in any sport or classification. By the time she graduated, they’d done it 12 times. In four seasons with Greeny patrolling the post, the girls basketball team secured two State Championships, one second-place finish, and a bronze medal. On the volleyball court, she guided her squad to a State Championship and two more third-place finishes. Finally, as a freshman on the track team, Greeny took third in the State high jump before rattling off three straight gold-medal finishes her sophomore through senior seasons.

Between 1991 and 1995, Greeny put together an array of athletic performances that kept record-keepers on their toes, setting eight Basketball State Tournament records and establishing a new state mark for total career points in girls high school basketball. With four first-team recognitions at the State ‘B’ Tournament and two regular season first-team all-state awards, Greeny earned an easy nod for the Seattle Times’ All-Century High School Basketball Team at the end of the ‘90s. 

Following high school graduation, Greeny accepted a scholarship to play volleyball at Washington State University, where her on-court dominance continued. In college, she earned two second-team all-Pac-10 nods, playing a pivotal role in the Cougars’ runs to the Elite 8 and Sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament. By the end of her tenure at WSU, she’d accumulated the fourth-most blocks of any player in school history, earning three Academic All-American honors along the way. 

After college, Greeny returned to the court as a coach. In 2011, following successful stints as the head coach at Pullman High School and Lewis/Clark State College, she returned to Pullman. Across 12 seasons at the helm of the WSU volleyball program, Greeny has racked up over 200 wins and two Pac-12 Coach of the Year awards.

Through her skillful grace and unmatched compassion on the court – from the high jump pit to the key to the coach’s chair – Greeny has established an almost mythical presence in Washington state athletics. Beyond the tangible legacy of trophies and plaques she’d left along the walls and trophy cases of Davenport High School in the early 1990s, Greeny had become an icon for young, aspiring girl athletes, whose handwritten letters flooded in from across the Spokane Valley, requesting autographs and return messages from their unheralded hero.

Yet even for those fortunate enough to witness her prodigal athleticism in person, what stood out most about Jennifer Stinson Greeny wasn’t her scoring or impenetrable blocking – it was her “uncommon grace” and impact as a teammate, opponent, and leader, both on the court and in her community.