Senior Dylan Leonhardt hadn’t really tried volleyball before his freshman year, as he’d always played other sports.
“I grew up playing a lot of other sports – baseball, basketball, lacrosse. But in high school, I decided to stop playing baseball and basketball,” Leonhardt said. “So one of the seniors on the volleyball team, who knew me, told me to come try volleyball, and I ended up liking it.”
Leonhardt started playing during open gyms and then joined the junior varsity team in his freshman year, but it wasn’t easy.
“In the beginning, it was really challenging,” Leonhardt. “Learning to play defense is probably what I’d say is the hardest part of the sport.”
Today, Leonhardt plays as an outside hitter and defensive specialist for Baldwin’s varsity boys volleyball team.
“As an outside, my job is to put the ball on the floor and score points, but also to be an all-around player,” Leonhardt said. “So I have to be able to pass, set, serve, and then, as a defensive specialist, I have to serve and play solid defense.”
Sophomore Biswas Mongar notes that Leonhardt is particularly apt at playing outside hitter.
“With his outside hits, we get a lot of points, and he’s a really smart hitter. He knows when to put balls inbound when sets are off and when to take shots,” Mongar said.
Leondardt is a vocal leader on the court, junior setter Ayush Rai said.
“He makes his presence known,” Rai said. “He lets us know we can rely on him. He calls out to me on the court to set to him.”
Boys’ volleyball took home section champion honors for the first time in 20 years, and looking ahead to the playoffs, Leonhardt has a strong outlook.
Boys volleyball took home section champion honors for the first time in 20 years this season.
“To be section champs means a lot. I knew we had the potential to, and to be able to do what I knew we could, it means a lot,” Leonhardt said.
Given the team’s strong season, Leonhardt has a positive outlook going into the playoffs.
“Since we are section champs, we’re most likely going to get a decent seed and a home playoff game, and hopefully we can make it past the first round,” he said.
Leonhardt is known to be a strong leader and teammate.
“He stands up as a very strong, encouraging leader,” freshman Karan Bhujel said.
There was a moment this season when Bhujel was stressed, and Dylan stepped in to help.
“He told me to calm down and encouraged me to do better,” Bhujel said.
Mongar agreed with Bhujel about Leonhardt’s leadership qualities.
“Dylan picks everybody’s heads up when they’re feeling down,” Mongar said.
This is really important for the team, Mongar said.
“How you feel – it’s not just about you, it’s about the whole team,” Mongar said. “If one is down, everybody might go down, so having somebody there for you will help the team be stronger. It makes us family-like.”
