HOWARD – Ashley and David Bartok knew their daughter was going to be special long before she claimed her spot in East Knox lore.
There was the day when Meggan, age 8, knocked on her neighbors’ door, asking if she could play basketball in their driveway (an older couple with grandchildren, they gladly obliged). Then there were all the days that followed – Meggan in the driveway, honing her shooting and dribbling skills, falling in love with the game.
It didn’t matter how hot, or cold, or nasty the weather got outside; Meggan was determined to play.
“It’d be wintertime and she’s out there, pounding the pavement,” David recalled at a game last month, a proud smile stretching across his face. Meggan used to shovel off a path in the driveway when it snowed, he said, so her training wouldn’t be interrupted.
“Something’s ringing in your head, you know. That’s definitely going to be her sport.”
Last month, the girl from the driveway made history. Meggan Bartok became the fourth girls basketball player in school history to reach the career 1,000-point mark.
“It’s an honor,” she said.
Bartok did it against state-ranked Cardington on Jan. 25. In the second half of a 75-42 road loss, guard Abigail Buckingham passed it to Bartok in the post. The senior skied toward the basket and laid the ball in through contact, writing her name in East Knox’s record books.
Cardington coach Jamie Edwards called a timeout before Bartok stepped to the free-throw line, so she could be recognized for her achievement. East Knox coach Chip Pozderac presented Bartok with a commemorative game ball and a framed collage with pictures of her playing.
“I started to tear up… ” Bartok recalled later. “It was really nice. It was an awesome feeling.”
Bartok was honored again a week later, in her first home game since making history. Lindsay Bush, a former East Knox girls basketball player and current school board member, organized a pregame ceremony to honor all of the program’s 1,000-point scorers before the Bulldogs took on Mount Gilead.
Bartok was joined by Rosy Burwell Davis, the first player in program history to eclipse the thousand-point mark. Davis, a 1981 graduate, did it before the three-point line was implemented (it was adopted by the OHSAA in 1987). The program’s other two thousand-point-scorers, Claire Williams (Class of 1984) and Liz Beach (Class of 2008) were unable to attend, but were recognized during the ceremony as well.
Bartok’s parents attended East Knox High School together in the 1980s. They grew up watching Davis, then cheered along Williams as she took East Knox to new heights. To think their daughter – once the girl in the driveway, now the girl in the record books – is now a part of that group?
“It’s pretty cool,” Ashley said with a grin.
Heart of a champion
On a cold, windy night in late January, much like the nights Meggan Bartok used to spend in the driveway, East Knox found itself in trouble at Centerburg.
The Bulldogs (10-11, 4-10 KMAC) were trailing 8-4 to their county rivals. The Trojans (1-21, 0-14) hadn’t won a game since Dec. 17, but they were off to a hot start in their home gym.
Bartok couldn’t find her stroke from the outside. She was being face-guarded by Centerburg’s best defender, sophomore Chloe Goulter.
So, as great players do, Bartok improvised.
The senior crashed the offensive glass, pulling down rebounds and creating additional opportunities for her team to score. She rebounded defensively as well, pushing the ball in transition and finding open teammates. Her energy propelled East Knox to an 11-10 deficit after one quarter, a 23-13 lead after one half, and eventually a 53-40 win over the Trojans.
Bartok finished with 11 points that night – just below her average of 16, which ranks fourth in the Knox Morrow Athletic Conference. But she didn’t need to score to make a difference, and according to Pozderac, that’s what makes her special.
“Her outside shots weren’t falling tonight, they fell last night. But she does so many other things so well…” Pozderac said. “She is the most gifted athlete I have ever coached.”
Bartok is East Knox’s Swiss Army Knife. She leads the team in scoring (16 points per game), rebounding (9 rebounds per game) and passing (4 assists per game). On the defensive end, she averages a team-best 2 steals per contest.
With the ball in her hands, Bartok is a threat to score from anywhere. She’s quick and strong enough to drive to the hoop and finish through contact. She’s skilled enough to stop on a dime and hit mid-range jumpers.
And just when defenses think they have her contained, Bartok can nail the longball. She hit two late-game threes to give East Knox its most dramatic win of the season, a double-overtime victory over Heath on Jan. 20.
“When she sets her mind to it, you might as well just mark it in the book and get back…” Pozderac said. “She’s amazing.”
Bartok was named first-team all-KMAC last season and will likely earn the honor again this year. What sets her apart, aside from her skill and raw athleticism, is her competitiveness.
Pozderac recalled a game earlier this season, at Coshocton, which East Knox won by 32 points. The Bulldogs held a comfortable lead at the end of the third quarter, and with one minute left, the coach figured she’d let Bartok rest. After all, the senior was recovering from a high ankle sprain at the time, and she’d played most of the night.
“I thought, I’ll give her an extra minute to breathe,” Pozderac recalled. “You’d have thought I killed her mother.”
Bartok, a four-year starter who’s played nearly 100 games for East Knox, does not do well on the sideline. She’s a gamer.
“That’s her competitive spirit,” said Pozderac, laughing about the moment now. “She’s awesome. I lucked out.”
An unselfish star
As great as Bartok is, her parents and Pozderac have one complaint:
She doesn’t shoot the ball enough.
“Sometimes,” Meggan concedes, a wry smile creeping across her face. But there’s a method to her madness.
“I think it’s a team sport. I feel like everyone should be involved,” she said. “My team – I mean, they helped me get my thousandth. I couldn’t have done it without them.”
Bartok understands what most high school stars can’t begin to fathom: that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
“She’s always looking to make that pass,” Pozderac said. “I love watching her come up the court with the ball, looking to see where she’s gonna go with it. I mean, she can thread the needle like nobody. I think people forget what a great passer she is.”
This unselfishness manifested itself on the volleyball court as well. Bartok, a three-year volleyball player at East Knox, earned first-team all-district honors last season. She was recognized as the team’s top defensive player all three years. Coach Allie Henthorn noted her willingness to play anywhere on the court, if it meant the team would have a better chance at winning.
“Meggan Bartok is a one-in-a-million kid. It’s not every day you have a player that really can do it all…” Henthorn said. “She has played roles that weren’t always her favorite, but it was what the team needed. She has stepped up as a leader, captain, and player to fill voids in our program in order for our team to be successful.
“Meg is a special player to me, not just because of her talent or skill, but because she cares so much. She leaves her heart and soul on the court each time she plays and it shows.”
Bartok may have etched her name into East Knox’s record books for her scoring ability. But those who know her best understand it’s never been about personal point totals for the senior.
“She’s kind-hearted and she’s always willing to help somebody,” her mother said.
“She’s thinking about the other players, instead of herself,” her father added. “You can see that when she’s playing the game.”
The path ahead
It’s unclear what it will take for Bartok to become East Knox’s all-time scoring leader. Due to administrative turnover, the school’s athletic department has not kept records of career point totals over the years.
Pozderac figures she has to be close.
“I’d love her to be the all-time leading scorer,” the coach said with a smile.
Regardless, Bartok said she hopes to continue her basketball career at the college level. She’s currently deciding between two Div. III schools – Wittenberg University (where her sister, Macee, attends school) and Mount Union.
Bartok plans to study pre-physical therapy, with the goal of one day becoming a physical therapist.
“I don’t really want to sit at a desk all day,” she explained. “I just want to be active and help people out.”
Things haven’t always been easy for Bartok at East Knox. The Bulldogs finished near the bottom of the conference her first two seasons.
But she’s finishing her high school career on a positive note. Last year, she helped lead East Knox to its first winning season since 1997. This year, alongside fellow seniors Buckingham and Morgan McCauley, East Knox was once again competitive in KMAC play. The Bulldogs will look to make a tournament run in the Div. IV central district (they host Ridgedale in the first round on Friday night).
From here on out, Bartok will be playing every game like it’s her last – because it very well could be.
Not that she wasn’t doing that already.
“It’s a small community,” Bartok explained. “You have to have a big heart.”
