By Mindy Tate
mtate@williamsonherald.com

Independence’s Johnny Kuchar III and Brentwood Academy’s Ellie Collins have been selected as the February recipients of the John Maher Scholar Athlete Award presented by the Williamson Herald.

Kuchar, the son of Dawn and John Kuchar Jr., is called a “relentless” player on the court, according to Coach Darren Henrie.

“Johnny has been an impact player in varsity athletics for three years while maintaining a 3.4 GPA,” said Henrie in nominating Kuchar. “He has been an excellent player throughout the 'growing' pains of IHS athletics and has displayed great courage, tenacity and leadership along the way. 

“Johnny is leading the varsity basketball team in scoring, steals, and assists,” Henrie said earlier in the season. “And he leads all guards in rebounding. Johnny has also been the starting center fielder on the baseball team since our school has opened. He was MVP as a sophomore and defensive player of the year as a junior. Johnny has lead the baseball team in steals all three years and has no fielding errors for his career.”

Kuchar has also been a member of the golf team for three years, showing his versatility.

“It's hard sometimes to balance sports and school, but I feel like I do a good job,” Kuchar said of his sports career. “The key is to focus on (either sports or school) and do it to the best of your ability.”

For Henrie, Kuchar is an example to his fellow students.

“He serves as an example to his peers. He's a great example of a student-athlete that has managed to do well in class while juggling a hectic sports schedule,” Henrie said.

"The key to success is not accepting failure and putting in extra effort and time in the offseason and I feel that Johnny really demonstrates that. Johnny has dedicated a lot to this program and it’s always nice to coach a young man that understands what is happening on the court. The difference between (Johnny) and most players is that he strives to figure out things that he doesn't understand on the floor.”

Henrie thinks Kuchar has much to offer in the future.

“He can be as successful as he wants to be. At some point for everyone, athletics end and he will need to find success outside of athletics, whether it be with his family or at his workplace,” Henrie said. “I hope that the things (our program) has taught him will help him in the future.”

Collins, the daughter of Angie and Chris Collins, is undecided on her college choice, but the list is impressive — Furman, Washington University or Vanderbilt.

“Although her academic (one of the top in her class) and athletic successes (state champ in basketball) are impressive, the most wonderful thing about Ellie is her heart for others,” Coach Rhonda Brown said. “She is a leader on the basketball team and a leader with her friends.

“Ellie is a competitor and prepares to do well. She is the first to arrive and the last to leave at practice. She has started on our varsity girls’ basketball team since her sophomore year,” Brown said. “Whether she is competing during a shooting drill or on a class assignment, Ellie is looking to win and prepares to do so. Whenever we need someone to make end-of-the-game free throws, Ellie is the one.”

The examples of Collins’ importance to the team go back several years.

“In a quarterfinal state game her freshman year, we were up one with just a few seconds to go. We had the ball and called timeout. Although Ellie was just a freshman, I put her in to hit the winning free throws,” Brown said. “Knowing they would foul the ‘freshman,’ Ellie was the perfect choice. She was ice cold from sitting on the bench, but nailed the two free throws and sealed the game for us. This was the start of many games that Ellie has either won or sealed for us over the past three years.”

Brown also has Collins as a student in an honors class.

“Having known Ellie Collins as a student-athlete for the past five years, I know that she is an invaluable asset to any team or classroom,” Brown said. “Her maturity level is far advanced and her character and integrity set the standard for her peers and all those around her. I have had the pleasure of knowing her in two very different capacities:  the classroom and on the basketball court. 

“As a student in my honors anatomy class, Ellie is outstanding. She not only sets the tone for academic excellence on tests and assignments, but she understands the material on a higher level than that of most of her classmates,” Brown said.

“One of the greatest joys I have as a teacher/coach has been seeing Ellie develop as a person,” Brown said. “Having been her basketball coach the past three years, it is amazing to see her blossom from a quiet, shy middle school kid into a mature leader, competitor, and outgoing young lady. Though unassuming, she is prepared, works hard, thinks of others, and is very competitive. It is no surprise that the three years she has been on our varsity girl’s basketball team have been the three best in our school’s history.  She competes with everything she has.  She makes the most of the gifts God has given her on the court and in the classroom. She is the one I want at the free throw line with the game on the line.” 

Posted on: 2/22/2007