Tara Kroesch, Millennium Hall of Fame

Richard Dunn

Nicknamed “The Crusher” on Newport Harbor High’s girls volleyball

team, Tara Kroesch is preparing for another set, spike and kill in the

coaching ranks.

A former national champion in club volleyball under Charlie Brande and

a two-time All-CIF Southern Section Division I selection under Dan Glenn

at Newport Harbor, Kroesch became an NCAA standout at Pepperdine, then

returned to her Newport Harbor roots as an assistant coach.

“I discovered that I really like coaching,” said Kroesch, who coached

with Brande at the Orange County Volleyball Club the last five years and

with Glenn the last three at Newport Harbor, including the Sailors’

junior varsity boys her first year.

Now, with the aforementioned grooming from her two mentors, Kroesch is

ready to start her own program at Thousand Oaks High, where she was hired

Jan. 21 as the Lancers’ new head girls volleyball coach.

“It will be an exciting summer, to say the least,” said Kroesch, who

also plans to get married in August.

Kroesch, who lives on the Balboa Peninsula and is in her first full

year teaching at Carden Hall (a private school) in Newport Beach, said

her experience coaching at her alma mater has “been awesome,” and she has

“definitely learned a lot about coaching” while serving under Glenn.

But Kroesch, today’s honoree in the Daily Pilot Sports Hall of Fame,

put on a clinic during her playing career.

A three-time All-Sea View League choice for the Sailors in the autumns

of 1989, ’90 and ‘91, the 5-foot-11 Kroesch reached turbo power at the

prep level as an outside hitter after training with conditioning guru

Marv Marinovich.

“I think that little extra I was getting definitely helped me in

strength and conditioning, and helped get me in probably the best shape I

could possibly be in,” said Kroesch, who trained with Marinovich three

days a week during her high school career, except during the season.

“I’d say that was the biggest difference for me, training with him and

all those football players and basketball players.”

A four-year varsity letter winner who picked up her nickname with

rocket-like kills, Kroesch started at middle blocker, then moved to

outside hitter her junior year. She was Newport Harbor’s co-captain her

senior year (along with Maureen McLaren).

For the Orange County Volleyball Club, Kroesch was captain of Brande’s

18-and-under national championship squad in 1992, a team that also

captured a title that summer at the prestigious UC Davis Invitational,

where Kroesch wrapped up the championship match with a game-winning kill.

“That club season was so tough, but I remember all of us coming

together and playing so well,” she said. “It gives me chills just to talk

about it now.”

Kroesch, 25, remembers the Sailors’ matches against Back Bay rival

Corona del Mar the most. “Playing against (CdM) in packed gyms every year

was just awesome,” Kroesch said.

After accepting a full scholarship to Pepperdine, Kroesch started at

outside hitter all four years for the Wave and earned first-team All-West

Coast Conference her junior and senior years. She was a second-team

all-conference pick as a sophomore.

As a senior, Kroesch merited all-tournament honors in the postseason

National Invitational Tournament in Kansas City, a sweet way to crown her

playing career considering her final season at Pepperdine was “a hard

year” with a lot of “ups and downs.”

“I think I played my best college volleyball throughout that whole

(three-day) tournament,” said Kroesch, who thought about playing overseas

after college, but the concept didn’t materialize and she immediately

started coaching. “It was disappointing not to make the NCAAs, but (the

NIT) was the next best thing, and going out and leaving it all on the

court felt very good to me.”

Off the court, Kroesch has been busy this month. She got engaged Jan.

16 to Russell White of Chatsworth. No exact wedding date has been set,

but Kroesch said “it was a big surprise” when he popped the question.

With her new husband and job coming up, Kroesch is preparing for

life’s next set.

Prior to her hiring at Thousand Oaks, Kroesch said: “I’d like to have

my own program and put together all the things I’ve learned through high

school and college and through Dan and Charlie. But it’s a tough area,

because a lot of the coaches here have been around a while and you don’t

see them leaving any time soon.”