From kindergarten to varsity, Schwengel is a man of service

Anika NarayananStaff WriterKurt Schwengel may only have a preseason’s worth of experience as Samo’s new varsity baseball coach, but the newcomer is already deeply engrained in the team’s culture and community. By forging bonds with his team and implementing new training methods, he’s not only contributing to individual players’ success but also to the overall mentality of the team.“While I am a first year head coach I have been in the program for four years, as long as all of the players,” Schwengel said. “I don’t feel like my relationship with the players has changed since becoming coach.”Although Schwengel has only just come into the varsity coaching position for the 2013 baseball season, replacing previous coach Sheldon Phillip-Guide, Samo has been Schwengel’s home team since his freshman year of high school, when he began playing on the junior varsity baseball team. He’s currently one of six Samo alumni on the coaching staff and for the past four years, he served as the team’s pitching coach. However, with his new seniority, he plans on making changes throughout the whole program.“We have been trying to teach the kids a lot of the fundamentals that they seem to have forgotten over the years in an effort to simplify the game,” Schwengel said.Beyond his ample qualifications for understanding baseball, it may be his jubilant, commanding coaching style that has proved so efficient and relatable among his players. The fact that Schwengel is a kindergarten teacher at Franklin Elementary School may also contribute to his coaching style. He has known some of his players for a lot longer than their Samo baseball careers.“It’s amazing to coach kids that I taught in Kindergarten,” Schwengel said. “I have known all the Franklin Elementary kids since Kindergarten but Eli Bieber and Robbie Kerr were my actual students. It’s really incredible to watch them grow, both tower over me, and both have become great baseball players.”Schwengel carries some of his kindergarten practices onto the field, filming the team practicing and working out for motivation and support, much like he films his kindergarteners finger painting and putting on class plays to document their growth.“High school baseball players are a lot like kindergartners,” Schwengel said. “They are both easily distracted, have trouble sitting still and learn best when they are having fun. My teaching styles in the classroom and on the field are very similar, I like to have fun. I try to keep both my classroom and coaching practices at a high energy level.”Samo junior varsity pitcher Kerr had Schwengel as a kindergarten teacher, helping him foster a connection with his new coach.“It’s funny how these things work out,” Kerr said. “It was a lot of fun to have him in kindergarten and now it’s a lot of fun to have him as a baseball coach, but in a different way. He lets us have fun while also teaching us the skills we need to know. He’s a really fun person to have around.”However, Schwengel finds the perfect balance of maintaining a positive, enjoyable setting for his players while not compromising their work ethic or competitive drive. Although the team is striving for an ultimate victory in the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) tournament in May, according to Schwengel, the team is taking every game and practice one day at a time, strengthening and training each day and measuring their success not only in games with numerical evidence, but also on the field.“Alex Turner and Conner Greene have been getting a lot of attention from Major League scouts but we have some other great players as well,” Schwengel said. “I would not trade our catcher, Lino Lares, for any other catcher in CIF, he is our anchor out there. Our shortstop Mason Landis is a smooth hitting, three year varsity player starter who will be a great college player. Our team has been nothing short of dominant since August. It should be a great year.”Under Schwengel’s guidance, the team has also been trying new strengthening methods, such as working out in different mediums beyond the grass field.“The beach workouts started out as a necessity due to other sports using the baseball field in the fall but turned out to be very useful for teaching certain aspects of baseball fundamentals,” Schwengel said. “Beach running is twice the workout so the kids got a lot stronger and faster on the beach. We also want the kids competing as often as possible and not just in baseball, whether it’s beach volleyball or ping pong I want the kids to learn how to compete, feel pressure and learn to deal with that pressure so that they will not be affected when it’s game time.”With the season already underway, and two home wins to validate their efforts, there is no doubt that Schwengel brings a momentum and stride to the team.“Having Schwengel around is fun,” pitcher Alex Gironda (’14) said. “He’s new and he’s different, and he makes hard work fun...it’s going to be a great first season for him and us.”anarayanan@thesamohi.com