Benet’s Brinkley Douglas hears the question frequently.
Is she named after historian Douglas Brinkley?
“That’s a very good question,” Douglas said. “It’s just a funny coincidence.”
But Douglas is named after someone famous: model Christie Brinkley.
“My mom always liked her and the name Brinkley,” Douglas said. “And my parents’ names are Brian and Kelly, so kind of smush them together, and it’s coincidentally Brinkley. It’s a pretty rare name.”
Indeed, Douglas knows of no other person named Brinkley. And soon enough, she will be attending a college that is no stranger to uniqueness.
Douglas, a senior midfielder, has committed to play at Richmond, which is the only college in the country whose sports teams are nicknamed the Spiders. She said she’s thrilled to have the chance to play Division I soccer and embraces the nickname.
“I think it’s fun, but some people think it’s a creepy mascot,” Douglas said. “The mascot itself at basketball games is kind of creepy-looking, but the logo is very cool.”
Douglas has been a cool presence at defensive midfielder for the Redwings the past two seasons. She had two goals and seven assists in the spring to help Benet (22-5) finish second in Class 2A.
Douglas is Benet’s second player in her class to commit to a Division I program, joining Middle Tennessee State recruit Sadie Sterbenz. She will be the fourth player from Benet’s 2022 team to play at the Division I or II level — recent grads Mariana Pinto (Lewis) and Katie Lewellyan (West Florida) are the others — and the least heralded of them.
“So much of what Brinkley does for our team is not the kind of stuff that you’re going to find on a stat sheet or a box score or in a news story, just because of the position that she plays,” Benet coach Gerard Oconer said. “She was kind of the glue that held things together.
“We don’t have the kind of success that we’ve had the last two seasons without a player like Brinkley to do what’s necessary.”
Physical on the ball and in the air, Douglas is the bridge between the defense and the offense, able to win balls and then distribute them to the forwards.
“I am physical, but getting stronger over the next year will help,” Douglas said. “I also think I am a good communicator, so that will translate well to the next level, being able to command the team.”
Oconer has been impressed with Douglas’ sunny personality as much as her soccer ability. The Redwings have lost just six of 46 games the past two seasons, but Douglas shines even when the results are cloudy.
“She’s the most positive person that you’ll ever meet,” Oconer said. “It’s difficult to find her without seeing a smile on her face, and I think that really helps a lot with the dynamic of our team.
“When you see a player like Brinkley, who works as hard as she does and is as talented as she is, just radiating positivity, you can’t help but to have that rub off on everybody else. Even when she’s having a bad day or her teammates have a bad day, she always has a way of raising everybody’s spirits.”
Douglas does that off the field too. The National Honor Society member is president of Benet’s chapter of the Best Buddies club, which fosters friendships between Benet students and kids with special needs.
“I’ve always had a passion for that,” Douglas said. “I was heavily involved in that program at my middle school, and at Benet someone brought up the idea of starting a club, and I helped get it going. It’s really cool.”
Matt Le Cren is a freelance reporter for the Naperville Sun.