Brubaker hired as Norwalk girls basketball coach

NORWALK — Expectations can be the thief of joy. Kyle Brubaker is quite aware of that phrase. But the soon-to-be first-year Norwalk High School girls basketball coach countered with another well-known phrase. "Pressure is a privilege, and I believe in that wholeheartedly," Brubaker said on Tuesday, after he was announced as the new NHS coach pending board of education approval on May 8. Brubaker isn't going to be in a typical first season for a new coach. Instead, the 2007 Patrick Henry graduate — who spent seven years as an assistant coach in the NHS boys program — inherits a team set for another run. On paper, the Truckers will return all five starters and 96 percent of their scoring from a team that went 17-7 overall last season. Norwalk is also 40-11 overall over the past two seasons, which included five tournament wins. "That's a testament to the girls who created those high expectations, and it's a compliment to have them," Brubaker said. "But it's not something we'll pay a lot of attention to. Outside expectations, whether really high or really low, we're not going to let anyone tell us what we're capable of. As a group, we'll determine what we're capable of by our attitude and work ethic." Brubaker, who takes over for Brock Manlet, who won 181 games as the all-time leader after 12 seasons, said ultimately his team will decide its own fate. "With high or low expectations, we'll be so invested in what we're doing to get better both individually and as a team, that we're not going to have time to listen to that," he said. "We'll set our own expectations, and that's what we'll use to guide our season." Brubaker attended Heidelberg University in Tiffin and spent his senior year at the college as a varsity assistant on the nearby Hopewell-Loudon boys coaching staff. He spent five seasons as the freshman coach at Norwalk, then did two seasons as the junior varsity coach (2022-23). During that time, he was the freshman coach under Steve Gray, the most successful basketball coach in Norwalk High School's history. He then saw the transition to Adam Kreischer with a year in charge of the JV team under both coaches. "Every coach I played or coached under, I always felt I could take things away from," Brubaker said. "There are always learning experiences that you are hoping to pick up on. Coach Gray specifically, I loved what he did defensively. I thought he was a great defensive coach and his teams were always organized and well-prepared. "He surrounded himself with smart people and he trusted them, maybe more than any coach I've ever been around," he added. "Coach Gray put a lot of faith in the people around him and let them do their job. He was a brilliant defensive coach, and there are things he did well that I definitely want to incorporate on the girls side." When Brubaker began his coaching career at Norwalk, he said he fell in love with the school, specifically the people involved. The relationships he built played a big role in his interest in the girls job, which came after he took one year off to spend more time with wife, Jen, and daughters Baylie and Zoey. "The kids were getting a little bit older, and I decided some family time was needed, and I wanted to wait for the ideal situation, which was to run my own program at Norwalk," he said. "I felt like they had a special thing going these past few years. "I have two daughters and 11 nieces, so I really started to warm up to the idea of coaching girls. So when this opportunity came about, my passion for basketball was and will still always be there. It's who I am, and I'm a better person when I'm involved in basketball. My wife gave her blessing for me to put my best foot forward, and it worked out, and I'm excited to get started." Though he has never been a girls coach, Brubaker doesn't have any major concerns. "There are things to be aware of and things you will need to do differently," he said. "But at the end of the day, basketball is basketball and treating your players the right way works across boys and girls basketball. "I'm confident I'll be able to build strong relationships with players, which is what helped me succeed on the boys' side." This coming season, Brubaker won't have a hard time coaching the Truckers to his favorite style of basketball. He wants an uptempo team that plays fast at both ends of the court. Norwalk returns All-Ohio guard Abby Koenig to lead that charge among its wealth of returning experience. "My teams have always played a fun brand of basketball," he said. "You have things that you have to believe in as a coach, but you also need to adapt to the skillset of your players. But you also have to continually look at yourself as a coach and say, 'this is going well, but how can we build on it to be even better?' "As far as this group is concerned, I think they can play fast and share the basketball. That's always fun to play and watch. It's a successful brand of basketball. We want to be aggressive defensively, share the ball, try to get out in transition, and most importantly, be selfless with a 'we over me' attitude."