Kyle Lundberg named new Medical Lake girls' basketball coach

Family is at the center of life both on and off the court for new Medical Lake girls' basketball coach Kyle Lundberg.

The former U.S. Air Force hospital administrator was named to replace Carey Schwarzer who recently stepped down from the post after three years on the job.

"Coaching has always been a passion of mine," Lundberg said as he clicked off a long list of sports - volleyball, T-ball, soccer, softball, baseball, you name it - he's coached at one level or another.

But specifically, "Basketball's (been) my passion," he said, but with his Air Force duties Lundberg could not rightfully commit to any high school jobs.

When he retired last October after an 18-year service career, Lundberg went to work at WSU-Spokane, but when word surfaced there was an opening in Medical Lake where he currently lives, Lundberg jumped at the opportunity. Using the G.I. Bill, Lundberg would like to pursue his masters in education so he could teach someday, too.

"I'm taking a pretty big leap here but it's something I wanted to do," the Wapato, Wash. native said. Lundberg, 39, has been here for a little over nine years and was stationed at Fairchild. "I love Medical Lake and the Spokane area," he said.

That was one of the reasons he retired, because the family didn't want to leave. Lundberg said he was pretty blessed in his time in the service and had limited moves having been stationed in Arizona for nine years, Florida for two and Fairchild for his final hitch.

"All three of my kids were born in different states," Lundberg said.

The family still has a direct connection to the military with his wife, Jennifer, a member of the active duty National Guard. The couple has been married for 16 years and have three children. Madison is in middle school, Jasmine is a fourth -grader and Jonathon, a first-grader, are both at Michael Anderson Elementary on base.

As for his pursuit of sports, Lundberg had an opportunity to play junior college basketball at Yakima Valley Community College but opted for the service two months after graduating. "At the time I thought the Air Force would be a better fit for me," Lundberg said. "Looking back I'm definitely glad I made that choice."

And he thinks he made the right choice to jump into the pool to coach the Cardinals.

"The good thing is everything I heard, Carey did a great job," Lundberg said. "I've heard nothing but great things about the group of girls playing basketball."

The challenge, Lundberg explained, "Is anytime you get a new coach there's going to be changes and they're going to have to buy into the new philosophy."

"I like to play an intense game of basketball," Lundberg said. "You give it everything you have, every day."

Outside of basketball he wants his team to be service-oriented with volunteer work. "Just kind of showing that the world in bigger than us," Lundberg said.

"If we want the community to support us we want to show them we support them," he adds.

Lundberg counts Eastern Washington University head women's basketball coach Wendy Schuller as a basketball mentor. "I really appreciate all the help she's given me."

Paul Delaney can be reached at pdelaney@cheneyfreepress.com.