Monika Czinano was born to parents Theresa Czinano and Gyula Czinano. Theresa is a high school English teacher at Watertown Mayer.
The Hawkeyes basketball player comes from a family of athletes, with every single one of them having played any form of sports over some time. Her old folks inspired her to pursue a career in sports.
The elder Czinano has come a long way from suffering a severe ATV accident to triumphing over that en route to playing for Iowa Hawkeyes.
Monika excels at both the power forward and center roles at the Hawkeyes alongside teammate Caitlin Clark. After joining the team in 2018, she is now in her fifth year and has already inked her name as an influential figure in the college’s history.
The 6 feet 3 inches tall Monika has set an outstanding record of becoming only the fifth Hawkeye ever to surpass the staggering milestone of 2,000 career points. She currently ranks third in the all-time scoring list, whooping 2,398 career points.
Apart from twice being named Honorable Mention by the Associated Press, Monika has also made it to the Big Ten All-Tournament Team four times. With her enormous talent, quality, and consistency, her WNBA dream does not seem that far away.
Monika Czinano Family Life
Monika was born as the elder kid of Gyula and Theresa Czinano on January 20, 2000. She grew up with them in Watertown, Minnesota.
The Czinano couple initially met more than two decades ago in Minnesota. After dating for some time and getting to know each other, they decided to bind their relationship into marriage.
Their marital life began quite happily as they remained together for around a decade and became dad-mom to three beautiful daughters. However, things didn’t go as expected over the long run as they parted ways and opted for a divorce.
Theresa Czinano Teaches English
Monika Czinano’s mom Theresa was born to Sharon and Willaim Hinde in the early 1970s in Mound, Minnesota. She grew up with her sisters Janel and Stacy and attended Westonka High School.
Although Teresa originally hails from Mound, she lives ten miles west in Watertown. After completing high school, she joined Gustavus Adolphus College for further studies.
The love for basketball runs in the genes of Czinano menage as Theresa also played high school basketball in Minnesota. She is currently an English teacher at Watertown-Mayer High School.
Theresa is exceptionally close to her daughters and has always aspired for them to excel in sports alongside their academics. She is often seen in the arena nowadays, cheering and wishing for the success of her daughter and the team.
Gyula Czinano is an Experience Strategist
Monika’s dad Gyula is no different when it comes to love and passion for sports. However, basketball was not the priority for Gyula as he practiced Shotokan Karate for over a decade.
Only after school gave him two options: playing basketball or joining the school’s choir, the 6 feet 2 inches tall Gyula shifted his focus to another sport. He later excelled in basketball as well and played in Hungary.
Like Theresa, Gyula also supports Monika and never misses posting her achievements and game results on his Twitter account. He also frequently attends the arena during matchdays to cheer for her daughters and boost their confidence.
Gyula is an experienced strategist who is passionate about making healthcare more human-centered. With expertise in all three facets (CX, UX, SD), he shares his knowledge in articles and podcasts through various social media platforms.
Monika Czinano Siblings Also Play Basketball
Monika Czinano has two younger sisters named Maggie Czinano and Mallory Czinano. Monika is the elder one whereas Malory is the youngest of the family.
While talking in an interview, the older Czinano recalled about the childhood days and shared a laugh about how the three siblings used to fight all the time back then. As they grew older, maturity snuck in as they realized sisterly love and started sharing strong bond.
Maggie and Malory have also followed the same path as of their older sister. They are pursuing their own basketball career.
Maggie Czinano Plays for Minnesota
The 6 feet tall Maggie Czinano plays guard for the Minnesota Golden Gophers. She is currently in her sophomore season after joining last in 2021.
After playing a couple of seasons together at high school, Monika and Maggie faced each other last season when Iowa took on Minnesota.
The middle child of the menage also attended Watertown-Mayer High School and excelled in multiple sports including basketball. She was was a two-time all-conference honoree including a 2018 all-state honorable mention in soccer.
Apart from that, she also acheived success in track as she attained second position in her conference in the 200 meters and 4×200 relay. On top of that, she guided Minnesota Fury to back-to-back state titles in 2019 and 2020.
Maggie’s another notable recognition was earning the Star Tribune All-Metro Honorable Mention honors. She averaged more than 21 points during both junior and senior years during her high school playing days.
After a quiet start in her fresman year at the Gophers, she has played in a total of 29 of the team’s 30 games during the 2022-23 season. She has averaged around 18 minutes per game this season and also improved on her scoring rate alongside the rebounds.
Mallory Czinano is a varsity Basketball player
The youngest Czinano is currently an athlete at Watertown-Mayer High School. The 16-year-old dons the jersey number 30 and plays power forward for Watertown-Mayer’s varsity basketball team.
She is also active on multiple sports including relay, basketball and volleyball just like her older sisters. As described by her mom, Mallory possesses Monika’s strength and Maggie’s agility and has all the attributes to succeed in her career.
If early signs are to go by, she is equally capable in both basketball and volleyball. It will be fascinating to see whether she walks down the same lane as her older ones or look to pursue college career in volleyball.
Monika Czinano’s Inspiring Chilhood
Monika spent a vast majority of her childhood with her sisters in Watertown, Minnesota. She fell in love with the game at an early age.
Her attraction and passion for the game grew even more as she once celebrated her birthday as a kid watching Minnesota Goophers play. She was simply star-struck watching some of the renowned players and dreamt of reaching the same stage one day.
The Hawkeyes forward made it to the varsity basketball team during her 8th grade and looked on her way to shape a bright career. However, fate had other ideas as worse things were to happen. She suffered ATV accident and unfortunately broke her arm and femur.
After the incident, Monika was not even sure if she could step on the basketbaall court ever again. Kudos to her bravery and mom’s continuous support, she began rehab process where she went through numerous therapy sessions along with swimming.
Czinano eventually recovered from the severe injury and it was only a matter of time for her to climb up the ranks with the ability she had. Thinking back to that day, she believes the incident not only made her humble but also toughned her mental character.
Monika was a High School Captain
After her school, Monika attended Watertown-Mayer High School in hometown. She further enhanced her athleticism there and became team captain during both her junior and senior years.
The adroit young girl succeeded in multiple sports and became an All-conference honoree in track and field for three consecutive years from 2016-18. She was also a letterwinner and state qualifier in volleyball, track and swimming.
She also led the women’s basketball team to back-to-back conference championships in 2016 and 2017. Monika scored a total of 1,643 points to go with 1,035 rebounds during her illustrious high school basketball career.
Czinano also made it to the All-section Selection by Breakdown Sports Media in 2017 and 2018 to cap off a series of marvelous accolades.
With the WNBA Draft 2023 scheduled less than a month away on 10th April, Monika Czinano has made a major impact in the March Madness. She is expected to go early in the process.
Surely, she has the gameplay, understanding and maturity to excel in the nation’s premier basketball league. Come 2nd April, it would be interesting to see if Monika finally gets the last dance for the Haweyes but it’s a tough test going thorugh South Carolina and iconic Dawn Staley.
