(Chuck Licata File Photo) Robert Koepl, 3rd from left in this photo from the 2011 McNeil Relays in October, was an inspiration to his varsity cross country teammates who went on and grabbed a bronze medal at the Class 3A state meet.
By Merle Bertrand, Sportswriter
Back in the early days of the 2011-12 basketball season, LHHS Runnin’ Panthers Head Coach Barry Boren used the phrase “nuts and bolts” players to describe several unsung members of his then-brand new team.
It’s a description that seems to fit senior Panthers Guard/Forward Robert Koepl perfectly; a description Koepl himself acknowledged as fairy accurate.
“I think we have some good scorers and a lot of people that know their roles,” Koepl described this year’s #11-ranked (TABC poll) Panthers. “I think my role is to come off the bench and give good minutes and contribute whatever I need to in order to finish the win.”
That’s precisely the sort of unselfish attitude that characterizes Robert Ryan Koepl, (pronounced KEH-pull), the youngest son of Liberty Hill’s Julie and Junior Koepl. An older brother, Trey (20), whom Robert calls his “favorite person in the world,” is an LHHS graduate and currently a student at Baylor University.
Born on December 4th in Houston, Texas, Koepl has run cross-country and track in addition to playing basketball, his favorite sport, for the Panthers.
While his current focus is on helping the basketball team get to the state tournament, Koepl is already a veteran of UIL state competition. He ran as a junior with the Liberty Hill cross country team that finished seventh in the 2010 state meet and figured to be a key component of this year’s team.
An injury set him back, however, and Koepl spent much of the cross country season running in JV races, trying desperately to work himself back up to full strength.
“It was frustrating because the injury did occur in just a fall league basketball game so that was kind of upsetting for me,” Koepl admitted. “But you know, the team ended up doing well and I was happy for them, so that was good.”
As usual, Koepl understated his own contributions to a 2011 team that ultimately finished third in the state; his valiant effort to claw his way back undoubtedly pushed and inspired his teammates and earned their respect.
“(My teammates provided) good support for me,” Koepl continued. “They wanted to do well in order to support me. They wanted to do well even though I couldn’t be out there helping them.
“It was just disappointing because I had been working at it for four years, and it was really something I wanted to accomplish. You know, last year we had a good shot at it, and then this season, I was looking forward to it, but I kind of got cut short because of that (injury) so, it was just disappointing.”
Perhaps not surprising, given his cross country experience, Koepl is taking nothing for granted when it comes to playoff expectations for the basketball team.
“I don’t know if we’re really looking forward to the playoffs yet,” he cautioned. “We want to finish up the district undefeated, but I think that’s what we’re going to do is take each game one at a time and not look forward to anything. Just go one at a time.”
Such sentiments are practically the definition of a sports cliché, except that one gets the sense that when Koepl says it, there’s more to it than just the platitude. Maybe that’s because Koepl listed “math” as a hobby along with basketball.
It’s not too shocking, then, that he scored the top PSAT/SAT scores in math, reached the AB Honor Roll, received Academic All-District honors in cross country, and earned a Regional 4th place in Number Sense.
Clearly Koepl, whose favorite musical artist is J. Cole and his favorite type of food is Mexican, with a special affinity for cheese enchiladas, is one smart guy.
Koepl plans on attending Texas A&M University after his graduation. Although he hasn’t quite settled on a major just yet, he’s currently interested in studying sports management.
But for now, Koepl remains focused on basketball and enjoying the time he has left at LHHS. He may or may not run track his senior year.
“I think that depends on how basketball goes,” he allowed.
Regardless of what he decides, Koepl made it clear he appreciates the support of those closest to him.
“My Mom was there for me during the cross-country thing and that was really good, and then my brother. He’s over in Waco (and) comes down whenever he can to watch. And then my Dad’s there most of the time.
“It’s been really good,” Koepl summarized his high school experience at Liberty Hill. “There’s a lot of good stuff here; there’s a lot of good kids, honestly a great coaching staff all around and they know what they’re doing, and it’s good to be around people that know what they’re doing.”
That no-nonsense appraisal is high praise, coming from Robert Koepl, a nuts and bolts kind of guy with the smarts to match his determined work ethic; the kind of student athlete who’s made LHHS a better place.
