`Cat volleyball shows discipline
Published 9:42 pm Thursday, October 2, 2008
Mount Si volleyball is sporting a fresh look and feel this year:
discipline. At the forefront of this new outlook is a new coach Bonnie Foote.
It may be Foote’s first year coaching a varsity team, but she’s not
lacking in experience. Foote joined the staff at Mount Si, teaching
physical education and psychology. Her volleyball experience includes coaching
the junior-varsity team at Kentlake, as well as numerous years playing at
both the high-school and community-college levels.
“It is so exciting to be at this school where I am coaching and
teaching,” said Foote. “We are really going
to promote it, but I think the kids are really going to get into it. I love it so
far, and am very excited.”
Assisting Foote is JV coach Kelly Lake. Renee Tredo will take the
“C” team.
The numbers for the program are also up this year. “We had 35 that
tried out for all three teams, and we have had a couple injured that had to
drop off,” said Foote. “So with that, we
have 11 on “C” team, 11 on JV and 10 on varsity right now.”
Top returners for the season are Heather Lewis (5-foot-7,
senior), Stephanie Sales (6-foot-2, junior) and Kristen Everett (5-foot-11,
junior). Newcomers to the varsity ranks will include Jaymee Horstman,
(5-foot-8, junior), Dana Luizzo (5-foot-8, senior), Lyndsey Hyatt (5-foot-8,
junior), Jaclyn Boals (5-foot-7, freshman), Katie Bankson (5-foot-5,
junior), Christina Strakele (5-foot-5, junior) and Randilinn Cason,
(5-foot-7, sophomore).
With the new coach has come a new sense of enthusiasm. “She
(Foote) is really solid and sticks to what she says,” said Lewis. “She knows a
lot and has coached a lot. She is teaching me stuff and has come out with all
this stuff.
“You go through a lot of coaches, and when you can find one that
knows a lot, you can tell. I’m really happy for the young people, and happy
they have the opportunity to work with a coach that will teach them,
“Lewis said.
But tips and tricks alone do not make a volleyball team better,
and Foote knows it. In addition to the latest techniques come hard work.
“I have real high expectations just because I think we have a lot of
talent,” said Foote. “It’s just a matter
of putting it all together. I think the biggest thing with this team is that
they don’t have a lot of fundamentals, so we are beating fundamentals
into them. We ran a clinic the first two weeks, just fundamentals. In the
past, the teams that I have coached have been fundamentally sound. That’s
due to them starting at a very young age.
“I think that it’s important to set real high standards, and I brought
that to this program from the beginning. We all look the same, we all wear
practice jerseys … we are disciplined and we are very structured. I think the
kids are buying into that, they like it,”
added Foote.
But coaching in Kingco will also be a new experience for her.
Team depth is always an issue, and the young players will have their work cut
out for them.
“We are young and inexperienced,” said Foote. “I have four
girls that played club in the offseason. Where I have coached before,
everyone played club volleyball. I think the more you play the better you will
be — you don’t have to play club but it is only going to make you better.”
“I think we will go far with this team. We are working hard, and
that’s going to get us there. I want to share what I know and make us better,”
said Lewis, who was echoed by another teammate.
“I think we are going to do well in the league. It’s unbelievable, how
enthusiastic she (Foote) is,” said Everett.
The team’s enthusiasm is apparent, and with that enthusiasm will
come added commitment from the players. That commitment will be key to
the `Cats’ chances at finishing high, and it will be tested at their second
match at Interlake, Sept. 12.
At a glance:
Head coach: Bonnie Foote, first year
Assistants: Kelly Lake and Renee Tredo
Top returners: Heather Lewis, senior, Stephanie Sales, junior
and Kristen Everett, junior.
Top newcomers: Dana Luizzo, senior, Lyndsey Hyatt, junior,
Jaymee Horstman, junior, Jaclyn Boals, freshman, Katie Bankson, junior,
Christina Strakele, junior, Randilinn Cason, sophomore.
Outlook: Young talent, but a renewed level of enthusiasm will
be contagious, supporting player commitment and taking the team to
the upper levels of KingCo.
Volleyball Schedule:
JV and “C” teams start at 5 p.m., varsity begins at 6:30p.m.
Bold indicates home matches.
Sept. 12, Interlake
Sept. 14, at Cedarcrest
Sept. 19, Sammamish
Sept. 21, at Liberty
Sept. 26, Newport
Sept. 28, at Mercer Island
Oct. 3, at Issaquah
Oct. 5, Bellevue
Oct. 10, at Sammamish
Oct. 12, Liberty
Oct. 17, at Skyline
Oct. 19, Interlake
Oct. 24, Cedarcrest
