Chelsey Meagrow set to lead alma mater's girls basketball program

Chelsey Meagrow always hoped to have this opportunity. So when the 2002 Edison graduate received word that she's set to become the Chargers' new girls basketball coach, it was a long time coming. The appointment is pending board approval at an April 24 meeting. "It's always been a dream and a goal of mine ever since I played in an orange and blue uniform that eventually one day I would take over the basketball program," Meagrow said Wednesday. Meagrow was a four-year varsity letter winner for Edison's basketball program. She played under Brenda Friend as a freshman, then for Dick Wennes from her sophomore through senior years. She also pointed to the influence of then-JV coach Jim Colwell as one of her three inspirations to get into coaching. "I loved how with those three that I was involved with the most in high school, you weren't just a player on their team, there was a genuine care about you," Meagrow said. "That's something I feel is very admirable as far as being a coach and something I plan on instilling here." This will be Meagrow's first varsity head coaching position, but she's an experienced coach at many levels. This past season, she led the Chargers' seventh-grade girls team. She served as JV coach under both Colwell and Ryan Kurt. "We are excited for the future of Edison girls basketball," wrote athletic director Nick Wenzel in a release. Meagrow has also coached a variety of youth basketball teams, including a current batch of fifth-grade AAU players. "My voice is very raspy because I just coached five AAU games in 20 hours on the weekend," Meagrow said. "When you're involved in teaching and guiding our youth in an athletic setting, you need to show passion. They need to know that you are excited to be there and invested in them in a way that nobody else has been." Meagrow also spent seven seasons as Troy Keegan's softball assistant. She has a high school son and a fifth-grade daughter, and she teaches sixth-grade social studies and science in the Edison school district, so between all her various roles Meagrow is very familiar with the girls she'll be coaching. "I don't have to do introductions," Meagrow said. "We'll go over scheduling things and expectations and just get right into it." Meagrow replaces Kurt, who led the Chargers for four years and is moving into an administrative role in Willard. Edison went 7-16 in each of the past two seasons. As a player, Meagrow's senior season included a sectional title for the Chargers. "I was first-team all-conference and first-team all-district," she said. "There had been quite a drought at Edison with winning a sectional title. My senior year, our 2001-2002 season, we went to districts, so that was awesome." Meagrow's first team should include two of Edison's top-four scorers from this past winter: Ivy Kluding (6.9 ppg) and Jorja Byington (5.8). Meagrow recalled her days in the old Sandusky Bay Conference, which often was stacked at the top of the girls basketball standings. The current SBC Bay Division has a similar feel with Margaretta's ongoing dominance. Edison's new coach is well aware that building the best program she can will take plenty of work, and she's up for the task. "Everyone has open gyms and team shootouts and summer league games, but we have to take that a step further if we want to be better than who we're playing," Meagrow said. "That means more reps and quality reps and just outwork the teams we're playing."