‘As Competitive as She Is, As Humble as She Is,’ Aly Kilburg Carries Her Father’s Legacy On and Off the Pitch

Graduate defender Aly Kilburg’s career with the Loyola women’s soccer team has been nothing short of inspirational. The four-time Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) Champion is tied for the most conference titles in program history, but what’s more impressive is her accomplishments took place while enduring the loss of her father, Jim Kilburg, to cancer. Despite her loss, Kilburg carries her father’s legacy by excelling as a student athlete and helping her family with the Jim Kilburg Foundation. 

A Park Ridge, Illinois native, Kilburg said her dad played sports all his life until he became a well-recognized coach of multiple sports in her hometown. Following in his footsteps, Kilburg said she and her brother played “literally every single sport possible” growing up.

Once Kilburg and her brother started high school, her father continued his passion for coaching the youth by hosting camps and clinics in their neighborhood. His wife, Laura Kilburg, said her husband loved helping kids feel better about themselves.

“He was the type of person that was interested in that child’s growth,” Laura said. “Maybe they weren’t the best athletes … But if they were in a basketball class and they weren’t that good, they came out feeling like LeBron James or Michael Jordan.”

Loyola Head Coach Barry Bimbi spoke on Kilburg’s father and how well known he was in his community. Bimbi, who lives in the same neighborhood as the Kilburgs, said 99% of the time he meets locals, they ask him if he coaches Jim Kilburg’s daughter.

In her first three seasons as a Rambler, Kilburg won three-straight MVC Championships (2018, 2019, spring 2021), a First Team All-MVC selection (spring 2021) and a United Soccer Coaches First Team All-Midwest Region distinction (spring 2021) among other individual accolades.

On June 10, 2021 — just under two months after the end of Kilburg’s third season — Jim Kilburg passed away at 53 years old. Kilburg said the support she received stemmed from her community and team coming together for her family.

“I always knew that they were there and I could go to any single one of them,” Kilburg said. “They were reaching out but not as a burden, just making sure I felt like they were there.”

Bimbi said when he recruited Kilburg, the Ramblers’ main focus was acquiring local talent. He said both Kilburg and graduate midfielder Abby Swanson — the only two players to win four MVC Championships with Bimbi — were the cornerstones of that class.

He added Kilburg is the definition of a team-first player, which is why it was easy for the team to support her. Whether it’s an injury or a family-related issue, he said his team is always going to rally behind her.

“They’re just very supportive of her and that’s the kind of culture we breed,” Bimbi said. “It’s, ‘You’re not just soccer players, we’re gonna take care of you on and off the field.’ And sometimes off the field is more important than on the field.”

Following her dad’s passing, Kilburg started in all 18 games of the fall 2021 season. She was named to the First Team All-MVC for the second consecutive season and was honored as a United Soccer Coaches Second Team All-Midwest Region selection.

This year, in Loyola’s first season in the Atlantic 10 (A-10), Kilburg has played in just two games after recovering from a knee injury. Embodying the traits of her father by always prioritizing her teammates, she said she rehabbed as hard as she could to be there for them.

Off the pitch, she also helped her family start the Jim Kilburg Foundation — a not-for-profit fund that will provide financial support to student-athletes through the Jim Kilburg Memorial Scholarship.

Kilburg said the kids her dad coached have now grown up and are preparing for college. This helped her family and friends come up with the idea of making a scholarship to carry on her father’s legacy.

The Jim Kilburg Memorial Scholarship will benefit a male and female from two schools in their hometown — the high school alma mater of both Kilburg and her father, Maine South High School, and Jim’s grammar school, Mary, Seat of Wisdom.

Kilburg’s mother said the scholarship has no academic requirements, but is geared toward athletes embodying her husband’s traits — a strong work ethic, empathy, humility, compassion and selflessness. 

Besides collecting donations, Kilburg has helped turn some of her father’s yearly sports events into fundraisers to contribute to the scholarship.

“Every year before my dad’s passing, in addition to his coaching over the summer, he would have a three-on-three basketball tournament every year,” Kilburg said. “Obviously it didn’t go to a fundraiser before that, but this year we started it.”

She said balancing responsibilities as a student-athlete and collaborator with the Jim Kilburg Foundation can be challenging. However, she said the team atmosphere has helped her keep a positive state of mind.

Kilburg carries her father’s legacy on and off the pitch with her strong work-ethic, empathy, compassion and selflessness, serving as an example for her team, according to Bimbi. He said whenever one of his athletes is having a bad day, he asks them to take a look at Kilburg’s resilience.

“As competitive as she is, as humble as she is, she’s just a great teammate to everyone and a great role model,” Bimbi said. “She’s faced adversity head on.”

Up next, the Ramblers, they will host the University of Massachusetts Oct. 20 for their home finale. Kick-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. and is set to be broadcast on ESPN+.

Featured image courtesy of Steve Woltmann | Loyola Athletics