By Jimmy Allinder
Kyle Loesner is not afraid to make mistakes because the East Brunswick High School volleyball player understands it’s all part of the game.
Loesner, a rising senior and the expected go-to guy for the Bears, thrives at being thrown into the pressure-cooker, especially when the match is on the line.
“I’ll do whatever I can to help my team win,” said Loesner, a middle blocker. “When the match comes down to the wire, some players shy away from taking the big shot because they are afraid to mess up. Me, I don’t think like that. I relish the moment.”
Loesner is admittedly driven by the need to succeed, which has served to motivate him to be one of the hardest workers on the team.
East Brunswick finished 27-7 last spring and captured the NJSIAA Central Jersey sectional by defeating arch-rival Saint Joseph High School of Metuchen in straight sets (25-23, 25-20). In the next match, the Bears lost in the state semifinals, also in straight sets by the identical scores, to Harrison High School, a team it defeated two weeks previous in a regular-season match.
“We fell short of our goal of winning the state title, and people are probably writing us off next season because we graduated so many players,” Loesner said. “But I believe we’ll bring back the championship to East Brunswick. We return two key pieces, [starting middle Ben Harrop] and [setter Andrew Gula], both of whom have been my teammates since I joined the varsity. As for myself, I’ve been in the gym every day since the season ended, and I made a vow I wouldn’t stop working until we get back to the state championships.”
Loesner’s versatility and athleticism enables him to play other positions besides middle blocker.
“I sometimes move to the back row so I can pass similar to a libero, and I’ve also played outside blocker,” he said. “What’s most important is winning the point. There’s no greater feeling than grabbing the moment in the spotlight and making a sensational play. That is why I’m putting in all those extra hours. When it comes to crunch time, I want to be able to come through.”
His coach, Greg Rutz, said he has watched Loesner develop a hunger for winning since he joined the varsity team as a sophomore.
“Kyle has been with us for two years, and he has gotten better and better every minute he’s on the court,” he said. “He has a desire to be great and understands how hard he needs to practice to get to that point.”
Loesner has also applied that ethic to his schoolwork and has achieved a grade-point average of 3.55.
“Being a student-athlete has never been easy, but I’ve found ways to make it work,” he said. “I often get home late after school or I’m away on weekends for a club tournament, so I really have to manage my time. I’ve always made school a priority and not allowed volleyball to dominate my life.”
Loesner hopes to play volleyball in college and has been in contact with a number of schools, but he won’t make a decision as to where he goes until the fall.
Although volleyball has resulted in most of the highlights of his athletic career, Loesner says his most cherished memory was when he was 13 years old and his township recreation baseball team traveled to Cooperstown, New York, to play in a tournament.
“It was the first and only time my grandparents from Florida came to watch me play,” Loesner said. “I was a good fielder, a modest hitter and I never hit a home run. On the last day of the tournament, I strode up to the plate [and] I heard my Nana yell, ‘C’mon Kyle, hit a homer for me.’ ”
Loesner connected on the next pitch and watched it fly over the fence.
“To this day, I have never felt more genuine happiness than when I rounded the bases after hitting that home run in front of my grandparents,” he said.
Loesner’s parents, Andrew and Kerryn, have had the most influence on his development and taught him to never give up in the face of adversity.
“I’ve had ‘slumps,’ but they encouraged me to remain positive,” he said. “There have been matches when we have been down by 10 or more points, but I never hanged my head. I might have looked silly to some when I screamed encouragement to my teammates, but my goal is to help energize my team. I owe that positive attitude to my parents.”
Loesner should also take credit for where he is at this stage of his athletic and academic career and what he hopes is a bright future.
“I have never been the fastest, biggest or strongest person on the court,” he said. “So I have to rely on a solid work ethic and putting in extra hours to be the most skilled player I can be.”
That work is about to pay off.