Brooklyn Kuchinski is nearing the end of her high school experience, having come of age, created many memories and looking forward to her future.
Kuchinski reflected on her journey from freshman to senior. “It feels surreal. It’s definitely an achievement; it just feels good, like looking back on all the memories and stuff like that. It’s all so heartwarming,” Kuchinski said.
High school was full of good memories for Kuchinski. “I’d say all of it. It was all around good. I didn’t have a bad memory at all. It was all good, all my favorite,” Kuchinski said.
Kuchinski credited her parents for helping her get through high school. “Definitely my mom and dad, without a doubt. Coming to a new school my senior year, it definitely wasn’t easy, so just having them to lean on and talk to every day definitely got me through my hard days. They supported me through basketball, really went above and beyond, helping me throughout the whole season. Also academically, they just believed in me, and you know, if I ever struggled, they would be understanding, and you know, just be there for me,” Kuchinski said.
Mentors also played a role for Kuchinski. “Definitely Coach Chumley, he helped me in my senior year especially. He just gave me a lesson on everything. He explained things on a deeper level and helped me understand certain things that I may not have understood, especially on the basketball court. Off the court, I was a little nervous about college, committing and stuff like that, but he helped me find the right fit for me, and he was so supportive in trying to reach out to everybody and trying to help me find that right place. Dorsey is just all around a good person, and she really made everything fun about my senior year, throughout all the hard, kind of rocky moments. She always held the light and everything, and always made me laugh and realize that life isn’t so serious all the time, and that you can have fun in life,” Kuchinski said.
Kuchinski described her transition from Bryant to Benton. “It was definitely challenging making new friends and basically completely starting over, but with how welcoming Benton was, it was really easy, honestly. Everyone was welcoming. Everyone was super nice. Everyone I ran across was all around. They took me in and loved me, so honestly, it wasn’t hard because they’re all the best,” Kuchinski said.
Kuchinski said she has many close friends. “I have a lot of friends, I wouldn’t really pinpoint one person because I’m close with a lot of people. All my sophomore babies from basketball, and all my juniors from basketball. Really, I love everybody. I’m friends with everybody, so everybody’s my best friend,” Kuchinski said.
Kuchinski plans to spend the summer after graduation practicing and playing with her college basketball team. “Just getting in the gym with my team and finally getting to play at that next level,” Kuchinski said.
Kuchinski is looking forward to the higher level of competition in college. “I think just the competition and how different it’s going to be. How much quick pace, high competition, stuff like that,” Kuchinski said.
Kuchinski said basketball brings growth on and off the court. “Seeing myself grow as a person not just on the basketball court but off the court as well,” Kuchinski said.
When asked how she wants to be remembered, Kuchinski said, “For growing into somebody a younger me would look up to.”