Highland product Kronk adjusts, grows during challenging freshman season at Kaskaskia

To say that the 2020-21 basketball season was challenging for Megan Kronk would be a vast understatement.

Kronk, a 2020 Highland graduate who helped lead the Lady Bulldogs to the IHSA Class 3A super-sectionals as a senior, completed her freshman season of basketball at Kaskaskia College in March.

Going through a pandemic-shortened season full of restrictions tested Kronk on several levels and forced her to mature quickly on and off the court.

“The biggest thing I think that affected me was that we had to fit our whole six-month season into a three-month season and when they did that, we didn’t have as much preparation time with real practices due to the (COVID) restrictions still in place. Then, we had a lot of obstacles with playing three games a week most of the time because you kind of get banged up, and you just have to learn to play through it,” Kronk said.

Another big change for Kronk was grinding through a season where the Blue Angels struggled, as they scuffled with consistency and ultimately finished 4-16..

“We had a lot of ups and downs for sure and I think part of that came from us not being able to have the proper team time together in the gym practicing before the games,” Kronk said. “We only had about 16 practices before our first game which is not that many.”

The Blue Angels’ lack of depth conspired against them as three players left the program during the season.

“We also struggled with our bodies because we only had seven girls at the end of the year, and we would be playing teams with 15 and 16 girls. I think that was one of the biggest struggles was we were heavily outnumbered,” Kronk said.

On offense, Kronk was solid if not spectacular as she averaged 9.4 points per game in 20 contests this winter.

“I did pretty decently at times shooting,” Kronk said. “There are of course some times where you have your little downfalls, but I feel like the biggest part for me was I never stopped believing (in myself) and the team. I guess a strong point for me, too, was trying to keep bringing the team together even though we were not having the best record.”

Kronk was particularly pleased with her defense as the 5-8 sophomore-to-be was often tasked with guarding bigger players. In turn, she became adept at drawing charges in the driving lanes.

Despite the struggling record, one bright spot was when Kaskaskia knocked off Lincoln Trail Community College 75-62 at home for its first Great Rivers Athletic Conference win of the season in late February.

“I think that was a huge morale booster for everyone on the team because it was ‘hey we played against the fourth-ranked team in the conference and we beat them,’” Kronk said.

Excelling off the court

Basketball was not the only area where Kronk grew and excelled at Kaskaskia as she finished her freshman year with a 4.0 GPA and was honored as one of the top athletes in the classroom.

“That was one thing that was pretty cool because coach’s big thing is you’re here to play basketball, but you’re also here to get an education and need to make sure you’re doing your best on both ends in the classroom and the court,” Kronk said.

Furthermore, Kronk definitely enjoyed her first season as a Blue Angel and learned a lot on the court.

“Overall, season-wise, I had a great time and I think it was a great learning experience for all of us on the team,” Kronk said. “Especially myself and, overall, I think I learned several new things that I did not know before I went to college.”

Moving forward for Highland star

As the summer begins to move into August soon, Kronk has begun the transition into offseason workouts at the Highland Rec Center to prepare for her sophomore season at Kaskaskia.

“I’m trying to build up some muscle but for me, the most important thing I’ve found is just to be able to keep your cardio up and trying to keep your strength up through eating decent food and just trying to do what you can in the gym to get good cardio (work) in,” Kronk said.

Kronk will head back to Kaskaskia to begin fall workouts in mid-August.