Kane County Chronicle 2024-25 Male Athlete of the Year: Kaneland senior Freddy Hassan

Freddy Hassan is not exactly close to Kaneland High School.

A resident of Montgomery on the border of Kane and Kendall counties, he lives in the middle of a one-mile school zone square shared by Oswego, Yorkville and Kaneland with his house sitting just on the edge of the Knights’ southern school zone. The daily trip to school usually took him about 25 minutes.

Yet he’ll be one of the first to make sure you know where Kaneland is.

Whether it was taking second place in the high jump at the boys track and field state championships for his third consecutive All-State honor or leading the basketball team to 31 consecutive victories and its first sectional title since 1982 while being an All-State special mention, Hassan always made sure he put the school in Maple Park on the map whenever he went out in uniform.

“It means a lot putting the school on the map, especially for kids who are in a similar situation where their friends go to other, bigger schools and they don’t know where Kaneland is at or even if it exists,” Hassan said. “I mean, it’s in the middle of nowhere, so it makes sense. But I always wanted to help put Kaneland on the map and get it out there.”

Considering his athletic resume in his senior season, Hassan has been named the 2024-2025 Kane County Chronicle Boys Athlete of the Year.

“Whether it was with basketball or track, Freddy always managed to go about things the right way,” Kaneland track and field coach Andy Drendel said. “He was always extremely humble, his grades were great, he was never disrespectful to any adults. He always carried himself the way that young men are expected to carry themselves. And then he dedicated himself to the weight room and earned every accomplishment he achieved.”

Hassan’s dominance during the school year started on the basketball court. He averaged 14.5 points, 9.5 rebounds, 1.5 blocks and 1.3 steals on the season to help the Knights to a 32-2 record, which included a state-best 31-game winning streak.

And while his play on the court definitely was crucial to the Knights’ run to a supersectional for the first time in program history, Kaneland basketball coach Ernie Colombe said it was Hassan’s leadership style that paved the way.

“He has a unique ability to bring people together that you don’t come across these guys too often, where they’re that talented and they have the ability to bring the team together,” Colombe said. “Freddy is a guy who’s loved by all his teammates. He is friends with the best players on the team and the guys who don’t get any minutes. So he kind of brought the team together.”

Hassan finished his high school basketball career as one of three athletes tied for the most wins in Knights history with 84 victories in his three seasons. During those seasons, Colombe said the growth Hassan had as a player really stuck out, especially in his final season.

“His sophomore year, he was definitely a ‘back to the basket’ type of guy,” Colombe said. “But his senior year, he was capable of stepping out for three and is handling the ball a little bit more and had a different role. So every year got better and better.

“But the impact he’s just had on the program is incredible. The younger kids want to be around him and they see him working and they want to do some of the things he did that’s left a lasting impact.”

Hassan ended his high school career on the track, jumping a personal-best 2.02 meters (6 feet, 7.5 inches) at the state meet for second place and his third All-State finish, becoming just the second Kaneland athlete to earn three All-State honors in a single event.

“I just looked back on how much work I had to put in to get here, especially with basketball, too, because I always wanted to be All-State for basketball,” Hassan said. “Once I got that, I knew I had to do it in both sports. So it just made me want it even more.”

Hassan, who’s going to play basketball at Waubonsee Community College, said he never expected the level of success he accumulated in his career. Especially after never playing for a team in both basketball and track and field before high school.

“It takes me back to when I was a freshman, which was my first time playing basketball and doing track,” Hassan said. “I wasn’t sure what to expect, wasn’t sure what would come out of those two sports. But everything ended up working out.”

When all was said and done, both of his coaches shared a similar sentiment – Kaneland is the home of Freddy Hassan.

“He just bleeds black and white, and he’s just as, if not more, of a Knight than any other athlete that I’ve ever had,” Drendel said. “It’s been just really cool to see him completely dive in and being proud to represent this school and this program.”