The Daily Pennsylvanian is a student-run nonprofit.

Please support us by disabling your ad blocker on our site.

aqz
Penn vs. Yale Men's Soccer Game Credit: Andres De los Rios , Andres De los Rios, Andres De los Rios, Andres De los Rios, Andres De los Rios

Tyler Kinn could tell something was wrong.

The then-freshman returned to Sacramento, Calif. for winter break after his first semester of college in 2010. While his brother Austin had made the Penn varsity soccer team, Tyler played club with the hope of making the team as a walk-on in the spring.

But all break, he didn’t feel healthy.

“I didn’t think too much of it,” Tyler said.

Finally, with a week left before he was scheduled to fly back to Philadelphia for the spring semester, he and his father went to the doctor.

“They sent me to get an ultrasound,” Tyler said. “I got a bunch of tests done.”

At the visit, Tyler received grim news. He was diagnosed with testicular cancer.

“I was young,” Tyler said. “Still thinking I was invincible.”

As soon as possible

Time was of the essence.

Tyler’s doctor had told his family that the faster a decision was made on how to best attack the tumor, the better, leaving very little time for his family to manage its emotions.

“You always think, ‘This is never going to happen to me,’” Austin said, “My brother’s never going to get cancer. It was really just shocking.

“It shocked the whole family.”

Tyler was rushed from test to test, doctor to doctor, all in a week’s time, including travelling to University of California San Francisco Medical Center to see specialists. Rather than wait for a second opinion, he and his family made a snap decision over the course of a week and a half, opting for surgery.

By having a testicle removed, Tyler avoided chemotherapy.

He did have to miss the start of the semester though. The longest amount of leave a student is allowed to start a semester at Penn is three and a half weeks, and Tyler took every day allotted.

Austin considered staying back with his twin, but ultimately returned to Philadelphia without his brother.

The longest spring

When Tyler returned to campus, he still hadn’t fully recovered from the surgery and needed to go to the doctor frequently to make sure that he was fully healthy.

During that time though, Tyler saw just how many people on campus truly cared about him.

“I wouldn’t have been able to do any of that without the support from my family and my really close friends at Penn,” Tyler said. “It was great just to see, you know, that people care about you a lot, and you never want anything bad to happen to someone else, but it definitely is eye-opening to see how people care for you in ways that you didn’t think they did.”

At the same time, despite having surgery just months before, Tyler started training with the soccer team with the hopes of making the roster for next season.

That’s when coach Rudy Fuller found out.

“At that point, he had mentioned something to me privately and from that point forward, we were careful about it,” Fuller said.

“But up until that point, I had no idea.”

Tyler worked himself back into soccer shape while still recovering, while Fuller and Austin both made sure that he wasn’t pushing himself too far.Austin thinks that there was only so much that anyone could do — Tyler had his mind set.

“He’s pretty strong-headed in his decisions,” Austin said. “I just kept checking in on him, making sure everything was feeling right.”

While the brothers didn’t talk about the surgery regularly, Austin did his best to be there for Tyler.

“We both kind of understand what happened,” Tyler said. “But it was great to have someone on the team I was close with and knew really well.

“He was always there for me.”

By the end of the semester, the twins were back together again. Tyler joined Austin on the roster and is now a vital piece of the Red and Blue’s senior class.

“Those two guys have become a really big part of our program,” Fuller said. “And I think both of them came in maybe not as key guys or key recruits, but they have made themselves into a really big piece of our program.

“They’ve left a legacy for themselves.”

Push and pull

While Tyler grabbed a spot on the roster, he still found himself behind fellow classmate Max Kurtzman on the depth chart.

Kurtzman was a year younger than Tyler but came into Penn as a blue-chip prospect.

TopDrawerSoccer ranked Kurtzman as the nation’s number two keeper in his graduating class.

But that didn’t stop Tyler from giving full effort to unseat the incumbent.

“He and Max were really close,” Austin said. “It was a really good competition between the two.”

Every practice, Tyler and Kurtzman would go at each other during drills, ultimately benefitting both parties immensely.

Kurtzman saw Tyler’s work ethic come out in each drill, while Tyler learned self-assurance from Kurtzman.

Kurtzman performed well in his freshman campaign, but because of a young defensive back line, he struggled in his sophomore season.

In the spring, a little less than a year after Tyler had joined the team, an opportunity fell into his lap.

Kurtzman left the team to try punting for Penn football, and the starter’s spot was essentially Kinn’s to lose.

“We felt confident with Tyler,” Austin said. “And he felt confident in himself.”

Invincible

While Austin had been receiving a fair share of playing time over his junior campaign, Tyler only had seven career starts heading into 2013.

But Tyler received the start in Penn’s season opener against Stony Brook.

He went through the ringer this season, both from injury and poor play.

Tyler hurt himself in the middle of the season, allowing freshman Max Polkinhorne to start.

In the same way that Tyler pushed Kurtzman, Polkinhorne has pushed Tyler this season.

“Max Polkinhorne has come in,” Fuller said. “And that has been a really healthy competition between the two of them.”

The team hit a rough stretch during its non-conference schedule, losing six straight regardless of who was in net.

But once Ivy play began, the Quakers hit their stride, and Tyler persevered, surrendering only five goals in as many Ivy starts.

Throughout the season, Austin has watched his brother grow.

“He’s always been a confident player,” Austin said. “I think that’s one of the most important things playing at this level, because there are going to be times when you’re not playing well at all.

“And if you can get through that with your confidence intact, then that’s when you really have success.”

When you need them

Last weekend, Tyler and his fellow seniors played in their last Ivy League home game.

And on Saturday, in their last Ivy League game, the seniors will play for an NCAA bid and an Ivy League title against Harvard, as the Quakers search for their first Ancient Eight title since 2008.

After having a tough season last year, going 3-13, the seniors have a chance to go out on top.

And Tyler will stand in net for the Red and Blue, after overcoming each and every obstacle that has been thrown in his way over his four years at Penn.

In the aftermath of his illness, Tyler learned the importance of friendship, a lesson he hasn’t forgotten to this day.

“It’s important to surround yourself with a strong set of friends and people who care about you,” Tyler said. “Because when you need them, they’re there for you. And when they need you, you’re there for them.

“It makes me appreciate who my close friends are.”

SEE ALSO

Al Bagnoli: a legacy defined

As iron sharpens iron

Franklin Field: finding a way to stay young at heart

A toast to tradition, transvestites and Pennsylvania football

Comments powered by Disqus

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.