KJ Kroetch is a true novelty.

Over the past four years, the girl’s swim team has had four different head coaches. Breaking that streak, Kroetch, the newest head coach, is determined to stay and help grow the program for her second year.

Swimming has always been one of Kroetch’s passions. She’s coached swim teams for 15 years, but never at the high school level.

“I wanted to be able to share that knowledge and hopefully pass it on,” Kroetch said.

Kroetch moved to the Louisville area last year, and when she saw the job was available, she jumped at the chance to coach Monarch’s team. 

“I realized it was a great opportunity for me, not just to coach, but to grow a program,” Kroetch said. “Especially with the history of coaches leaving.”

The opportunity fit perfectly into her love for coaching

“Coaching in general is fun,” she said. “Getting to watch kids learn so much over the course of many years is really appealing to me.”

Sierra Crean ‘23 returns to this year’s swim season with something she hasn’t had before: the same coach from the previous year.

“She is very connected with the team,” Crean said. “She stays connected through team activities as well as swimming in practice.”

Though Crean is happy her coach is staying, the prior inconsistency of coaches brought other benefits to the team.

“I think it made our team a lot stronger,” she said. “We stayed connected because our coach was never really there.”

Kroetch is excited to continue coaching the team for the coming years, but it’s time to focus on the season ahead. She hopes to continue to help swimmers get better with every stroke.

“I’m really looking forward to the season,” she said. “I’m really excited for the year, it’s gonna be great!”