MidWestOne Bank Scholar Athlete of the Month: West Branch Senior Druecker Lets Her Actions Speak Volumes
Ryan Murken
Your Prep Sports
WEST BRANCH – As the saying goes actions speak louder than words.
That old adage has been used fittingly to describe plenty of athletes over time but West Branch girls basketball coach Jarod Tylee couldn’t think of any that fit those words better than Rylan Druecker.
“She doesn’t say a whole lot she is quiet but she leads by example,” Tylee said of Druecker. “She is a leader by example for everyone and not just on the basketball court but in the classroom and in the school and in everything that she does.”
The soft-spoken senior guard isn’t a big talker on or off the basketball court.
Instead Druecker prefers to let her actions do the talking and over the course of her high school career they have spoken volumes about Druecker as a player and as a person.
“Rylan is the perfect example of what can happen when you put the team first and excel in your role,” West Branch Activities Director Jake Stenberg said. “Rylan has worked extremely hard preparing and practicing for this basketball season and her dedication is paying off. In addition to the gym, Rylan also excels in the classroom and is always doing the right thing. We need more people like Rylan in the world.”
Druecker’s play has spoken volumes on the court where she is a three-year starter and an all-conference performer.
Her accomplishments in the classroom are equally impressive with Druecker boasting a 3.98 grade point average.
It has been work ethic and attitude that have set Druecker apart in the classroom and on the court.
Those two qualities make her a natural leader by example, something that she picked up early in her career by following upperclassmen she looked up to as leaders.
“I had great leaders coming up like Tatum Koenig and seeing what she did, helping others I wanted to try to do,” Druecker said. “I want to keep the program successful and to do that I have to teach the other girls what I know to help them in the future.”
Not surprisingly success on the court has followed Druecker throughout her career.
West Branch has improved its record each of the four season Druecker has been in the program, going from 17-7 her freshman campaign, to 15-5 the following year and 21-4 with a state tournament berth a year ago.
Druecker is the fourth leading scorer for a West Branch team ranked third in Class 2A and off to a 12-1 start this season.
“She is just a really good kid, that’s the biggest thing that stands out,” Tylee said. “She has been a tremendous teammate, she is really well liked and respected by her teammates. We’ve been fortunate to have really good kids in our program and Rylan ranks right up there with all of those great kids.”
Druecker was a spot starter as a sophomore averaging 6.3 points per game while starting seven games.
She has steadily improved ever since, increasing her scoring average from 9 points per game last season to a career-high 10.5 this year.
“She is the kid that has put in just as much time as anybody else and probably doesn’t get the recognition she deserves,” Tylee said. “She has been an all-conference player sure but she just kind of goes about her work quietly and doesn’t say a whole lot and does the things that you ask of her.”
Druecker has also continued to grow as a student.
The only thing standing in the way of a 4.0 GPA was a B in a course her freshman year.
Druecker plans to attend Kirkwood Community College next year to major in dental hygiene.
“Over quarantine in March I spent a lot of time looking at colleges and what I wanted to do so it would be easier later on,” Druecker said. “I knew I wanted to do something in health care but I’m not a fan of blood so that narrowed it down a little bit.”
First, Druecker has some unfinished basketball business to attend to.
After falling in the Class 2A state quarterfinals last season Druecker has her sights set on a return trip to Wells Fargo Arena.
“Going to state was an incredible memory,” Druecker said. “It’s a dream when you are a kid to make it and to be able to do that as a senior would just be an amazing thing.”
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