Some players just get it. They see sport for what it is and reap the rewards that it offers. That is the case with Kathryn Magee of the UNBSJ Seawolves. She has played through great times and tough times. You will never be able to tell the score when watching her play. She plays the same whether she is winning or losing. Kevin Munroe has been her basketball coach at UNBSJ from the start of her career to the finish this year. He has the utmost praise for last year’s Rod Shovellor Award recipient.
“Kathryn absolutely sees the big picture. She realizes that basketball is a privilege and that there are more important things in life. She competes to 100% of her ability but at the same time she approaches everything off the court with that same tenacity. She relentlessly pursues excellence and is not afraid of hard work.”
Coach Munroe says that Kathryn brings many values to the team both on the court and off.
“First and foremost is the pursuit of academic excellence. As a team we work hard to overachieve in the classroom and Kathryn leads the way. When new recruits come on board, she makes it very clear that we are an academic first team and that playing basketball is a privilege. She takes pride in her work and she wants the team to do equally as well. Kathryn is dependable, hardworking, honest, trustworthy, loving, caring and sincere. The team not only sees what happens on the court but has witnessed what she does off the court.”
Leading by example is probably one of Kathryn’s strongest traits. She likes being a leader and strives to be consistent on and off the court. On the court she knows she is counted on to score and provide good defense. Off the court, she has embraced being an academic role model for teammates, especially those in first year who need that veteran guidance to keep them on the path and help them build a foundation of good study habits.
Magee says her parents were strong role models and taught her how to keep things in perspective. “I have a competitive fire to play my best and make teammates and family proud and leave it all on the court with a great effort.” Coach Munroe sees this competitiveness in her but “I think she also realizes that your basketball record in university is probably not going to be the highlight of your resume.”
Kathryn plays with the same intensity and effort game in and game out. Coach Munroe says, “Our team has been challenged this year with obstacles that have been far beyond our control. We still have a ton of pride and we still want to win. I think out of respect for the game and respect for our competition we want to put our best foot forward every time. We all love the game and we all love winning. The love of the game and being able to compete as a team is important to us and Kathryn always leads the way.”
Kathryn’s dad Chris Magee coaches the team as well. While one might expect this to cause friction, that is not at all the case. Kathryn likes having her dad around the team. “In practices and games, he is the coach and I am the player. I think having him coaching has enabled the team to have a closer relationship with him because they are at our house a lot and they get to know my dad in a setting away from the court.”
Coach Munroe says, “This is an interesting dynamic because like most daughters she appears to have dad wrapped around her little finger. She has no problems expressing her opinions and her famous line is ‘dad is all bark and no bite’!! Seeing them challenge each other on the court brings a smile to everyone’s face.”
Kathryn not only excels in the classroom and on the court but is also a community-minded person who gives back. “I was always extremely fortunate growing up. In grade 1, I had a teammate who was not so fortunate and had to come and live with us for a while. She grew up with a big sister and that inspired me to get involved too.” Magee says she is also involved in the UNBSJ Promise Partnership which provides mentorship opportunities for inner city children in a local school and she canvasses for the Canadian Cancer Society.
According to Coach Munroe, Kathryn is being modest about her community involvement. “She will do everything from stacking chairs to organizing major events. In her spare time, she is a Big Sister through the organization Big Brothers/Big Sisters. I have had her assisting me in feeding meals and delivering groceries in priority neighbourhoods. She loves to give back and like everything else she does it with a smile on her face.”
Coach Munroe recognizes the positive things top student-athletes like Kathryn bring to their team, UNBSJ and the ACAA. “It certainly brings respect to our school and the league. Her winning the Certified Professional Accounts Award for the top accounting marks which included U Sports and CCAA schools proved that you can play basketball and you can excel in school if you want to. Having an athlete in the ACAA do this gives us immediate respect across the country. I think that the most important thing that she brings to the league is that she is not just a basketball player. She is a strong student, a strong leader, a strong volunteer and a relentless pursuer of excellence.”
Of course, the respect is mutual between Kathryn and her coach. “Coach Kevin is a great support system. We can talk to him about things other than basketball and he has always been the one to show us how to keep the game in perspective and to tell us that there are more important things than basketball. He has pushed to do well academically and encouraged us to be involved in the community.”
When asked what a player like Kathryn means to him, Coach Munroe said, “It is no secret that I want the team to excel in school more than anything else. These young women have an opportunity to change and impact lives for a long time. Having this strong base to work from academically will take them anywhere in the world they want to go. Kathryn is exactly the type of student athlete I am looking for. She is already having a positive impact in our community, on our team and around the league. It is also nice being surrounded but intelligent players, that work hard for 4/5 years and that I can build a relationship with. It makes me proud and I typically have a big smile on my face as well when I am with Kathryn and the other players on the team. Kathryn is joining a long list of Seawolves players who are out there changing this world and I am so blessed to have played a small role in their lives.”
Coach Munroe summed up the Kathryn’s legacy with the Seawolves this way – “She relentlessly pursues excellence, she effortlessly helps others, she has a heart for the less fortunate and she loves to compete. She has been knocked down, but it is impossible to keep her down. She wants all her teammates to excel and do well. She has been my captain and go to person for the past three years. She has had a positive impact on my life, and I have no doubt that she will be changing lives for a long time to come. It has been an absolute honour to be her coach.”