Former Santa Clara University standout power forward Nate Kratch joined Danny Yoshikawa’s staff for the 2019-2020 season and was a key component of the 2020 Coast-South champions.

Originally from Watertown, Minn., Kratch began his Division One career at Santa Clara in 2012, playing the first of his school-record 129 consecutive games. He ended his career sixth in Bronco history in total games played, finishing ahead of Santa Clara notables Steve Nash, Kurt Rambis and Bud Ogden. 

As a senior, Kratch averaged 11 points, 6.5 rebounds, a team-high 48.8 percent from the floor and 42 percent from three-point range. Those numbers ranked him 6th in the West Coast Conference (WCC) in three-point shooting percentage and 12^th in field-goal percentage, earning him a spot on the All-WCC Honorable Mention team. He was named to the 2016-17 All-District VIII team and was a two-time College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Academic All-America nominee.

After graduation, Kratch played professionally in Europe before returning to Santa Clara to complete his master’s degree in academic counseling. He joined the Santa Clara basketball coaching staff under recently-hired Head Coach Herb Sendek. As a graduate assistant coach for the Broncos, Kratch assisted with scouting and video analysis until joining Yoshikawa at West Valley in the fall of 2019.