Player Spotlight: Dyer County Lady Choctaw Track’s Louisa Klebe
Dyer County Lady Choctaw Track's Louisa Klebe
Jason Peevyhouse
Editor, JP Productions Sports
Sometimes in life, you get only one shot at something and
this is holding true for Dyer County High School’s Louisa Klebe this athletic
school year.
There is a reason for this as Klebe, 17, is an exchange
student spending her junior year here at Dyer County High School. Klebe, a native
of Germany, will also have to repeat her junior year back home when her time
here in the United States is up.
“I do it for the experience to experience an American high
school year,” Klebe said.
Klebe played volleyball and dances in Germany and, at least
on the athletic side of things, has had a memorable year here at Dyer County High
School.
This past fall, Klebe was a member of the Dyer County High School
volleyball team which advanced to the state tournament and finished as the
TSSAA Class 2A Runner-up for the 2024 season.
“Such a sweet, hard
working, and very athletic kid,” Dyer County Head Coach Shanna O’Bright said. “So
eager to learn the game. Incredible work ethic.
“She was such a
great teammate and got to have a fantastic volleyball experience at DCHS. We
are so happy to have had her become a lifelong member of our DCHS Volleyball
family.”
Klebe played on the junior varsity level for the Choctaws in
volleyball but was there to see her teammates come within a game of taking the school’s
first-ever state championship. Klebe explained the differences between volleyball
in the United States and back at her home in Germany.
“Back in Germany, we didn’t take it as serious,” she said. “Here
we actually like did lifting and took it really serious. That was the biggest
difference I would say.”
While Klebe said she enjoys the more relaxed approach that
is taken towards volleyball in Germany, she admitted she would prefer the more
serious approach to the sport if she were to do it for longer.
Being at the state tournament was a great experience for Klebe
and one not many local players get to experience.
“That was fun,” Klebe said. “I really enjoyed that.
“That was an experience that I would have never had in Germany.
We don’t have like state stuff since Germany doesn’t have states. It was a fun
experience.”
This spring, Klebe is having success on the track and in the field as part of the Dyer County Track Team. She competes in three events – triple jump, long jump and the 800-meter run.
Track is not a sport she has participated in during the past
in Germany.
“A lot of people at the high school told me that it is a lot
of fun,” Klebe said. “I was trying to decide if I wanted to do tennis or track.
“I already knew a lot of people from the track team so I
decided on it.”
“She’s been really good for us,” Dyer County Head Coach
Justin Burns said. “She’s really been a surprise for us.
“She played volleyball for the school and wanted to come out
for track. I’ve been just very surprised with how well she’s fit in and how
well she competed for us.”
Burns added Klebe has a personality that makes her fun to be
around.
“She has a really, really good attitude about everything,”
Burns said. “She is a person who really enjoys being out here.”
Off the field and court, Klebe explained the classes are a
bit harder due to the approach that is taken during the school day.
“We only have 45-minute classes,” she said. “And, then, we
work the full 45 minutes and we don’t have a break. So it’s kinda hard.”
Along with participating in track, Klebe said she also
attended a church camp that was a lot of fun.
The hard work Klebe has put into a sport which is really new
to her is paying off. The junior has already qualified for the sectional meet
in two of those events – long jump and the 800-meter run.
Comments
Post a Comment