Kyler VanderJagt is the only freshman on the varsity boys basketball team. In order to get here, he put in countless hours of dedication.
“I am here because I put in a lot of hard work. You can really achieve anything, just keep working,” VanderJagt said.
Committing 25 hours or more a week to train and practice, VanderJagt constantly strives to improve whatever he can.
“He always wants to get better,” varsity coach Mike Kapuska said. “He is motivated to be the best he can.”
But VanderJagt doesn’t take all the credit for his success as an athlete, he knows his family and friends are a part of his athletic career.
“Without the influence of my parents and the other people around me, I wouldn’t be where I am right now,” VanderJagt said.
Even before he started playing, VanderJagt grew up in a household surrounded by basketball. His family has been nothing but encouraging and helpful on and off the court. You can see them in the stands at every game.
“They support me a lot. They push me to be my best with school, basketball, football, and really anything I do,” VanderJagt said.
For VanderJagt, there was a huge change between playing 8th grade basketball to playing on varsity. He knew he had to prepare himself for endless hours in the gym.
“The amount of experience and intensity was totally different,” VanderJagt said.
He also prepared himself by going to the YMCA and asking the coaches for the differences between 8th grade and varsity games and for some advice.
“They told me to be confident and let the game take care of itself,” VanderJagt said.
Sometimes, being the youngest can be viewed as intimidating. However, for VanderJagt he thought of it a different way.
“I didn’t look at it as playing with older people that are so much better than me. I thought of it as ‘we are all basketball players and we are all here for the same reason,’” VanderJagt said.
