Lenny Krebs rallies the troops at a summer camp in late June. Krebs took over the Warsaw girls basketball head coaching job in the spring after 14 years at Goshen. (Photo by Mike Deak)

WARSAW – It wasn’t exactly the perfect storm, but it wasn’t a washout, either.

Pieces seem to be falling into place for Lenny Krebs. Some very difficult conversations and some honest talks with his creator formed an opportunity he couldn’t pass up, allowing Krebs to jump at the chance to take on the girls basketball program at Warsaw. Becoming just the sixth head coach in the renowned program, Krebs felt the move within the Northern Lakes Conference was a necessary one.

“This whole journey started in April, I was making three or four trips to Warsaw per week,” stated Krebs, who was hired April 17 to replace Michelle Harter, who is now coaching the girls basketball team at Evansville Central. “I wanted to meet the players, meet some of the people at Warsaw. There is a tremendous history with Warsaw basketball, and I want to continue that tradition, on and off the court.”

Krebs coached the girls basketball program at Goshen for 14 years, helping turn around what had been a relatively anonymous program into a competitive one. Krebs won at least 11 games in five of his final six seasons at Goshen, including an 18-5 campaign in 2016 which stood as one of the best turnarounds in the state after an 11-13 season the year before. Krebs won 130 games in his time as the Redskins and RedHawks coach, and understands the culture of winning at Warsaw is a big one. But that isn’t the only motivation.

“I feel like I left Goshen in better shape than when I got there 14 years ago,” Krebs said. “Some of the relationships I made there are priceless. I feel like 14 years at Goshen has prepared me for the challenges that I will face here. Growing up in the Warsaw system, these girls know the pressures that comes with being a Lady Tiger. But it’s not just basketball, it’s life. Being a better person through basketball. We are in this together. It is going to be a fun journey and we are looking forward to it.”

Noting the timing was also a factor, his oldest daughter, Ashton Ellis, just graduated from Goshen and is heading to Lake Superior State to continue her basketball career. His middle daughter, Kacilyn, is heading into eighth grade and his youngest, son Karson, is going into fifth grade. Looking to balance their personal lives, finding a home, leaving a community that had wholly embraced his family, and moving 28 miles south to Warsaw wasn’t easy. That’s where Krebs’ faith came into play, letting the stress of such a major move become the handiwork of the Lord.

“It was a very difficult decision,” Krebs said, who attributes a lot of the behind the scenes credit to his wife, Angela, who helps balance several aspects at home. “We looked at a couple different areas to move, and honestly Warsaw wasn’t originally one of them. But things kind of fell into place. But anybody who follows basketball in Indiana, specifically in northern Indiana, you know how important basketball is to the Warsaw community. When that opportunity is there, you want to and will take advantage of it. Having faith in the decision was important. It just seemed to be meant to be.

“We gave 14 years of our lives to Goshen, all in. Not just basketball, but to the community and to the youth program. Trying to do anything we could for the kids in the community. That’s what we are excited to do here. God opened doors that we didn’t know would be open.”

Krebs mentioned his friendships in the game also helped mold his decision. Shaun Hill, who coached with Krebs last season and is a veteran of the Goshen coaching system, is taking over for Krebs. That left Krebs’ worry about leaving the program at ease. His longtime assistant, Jack Beer, decided to come south with Krebs to Warsaw and will join the coaching staff.

Also continuing to coach in the NLC, where Warsaw and Goshen are also sectional foes, gave him knowledge of the roster and who is returning. Warsaw is losing six seniors who accounted for over 75 percent of the team’s offense and rebounding. But summer camps and gym work with the returners has Krebs very hopeful that 2017-18 won’t be a total rebuild.

“Even though the team lost so many seniors, there is still a bundle of talent here in the program,” Krebs said. “It’s really just getting the girls to believe that they can play and be good at this game. There are a lot of girls who really can play this game here. Can they win 20 games like they did last year? I don’t know the answer to that. No coach does. I can say that we will compete every night, and will be in games people may not give us a chance to be in. It’s a belief, and it starts there.”