New season, new direction

Purpose. 

It’s a word new CSC volleyball head coach Jennifer Stadler said she uses a lot in the gym. Every touch, should have a purpose, she said. Players should know what you’re doing with the ball before they do it. 

Stadler, who was hired in May to take over the program after the departure of former coach Riann Mullis, said she values a good volleyball I.Q. in her players. She wants her athletes to understand the game at a high level in order for the team to play at a high level.  

“I like to play fast – I like a fast tempo, but mainly my coaching is based around defense,” Stadler said. “We have to have a really solid block and play good defense behind it.”

Stadler has had plenty of time to hone her coaching style over the past 11 years since joining her alma mater, Black Hills State University, as an assistant coach in 2008 and was interim head coach there in 2010. Before moving to CSC, Stadler was head coach at Sheridan College, in Wyoming, for the past eight seasons.

According to CSC Sports Information, while in Sheridan Stadler led her team to a Region IX North title match in 2017, reached the semifinals on three occasions and had three 20-win seasons from 2013 to 2015. 

At Chadron, 10 wins in 2017 has represented the high-water mark for the team over the past several years. 

Several current players from that 2017 team are still with the team, but in 2018 the Eagles fell just short with a record of 8-19. 

Stadler said she doesn’t set win-total’s as goals, but expects success from her team. 

“We set the bar high when we talked about it,” she said. “We want to exceed everybody’s expectation. That’s kind of my goal and I think their goal as a team. We have some seniors that definitely want to go out with a bang and their expectation is even higher than my own.”

One of those seniors is Timmi Keisel who says the atmosphere of change has felt good as the team prepares for the new season. 

“We’re all excited about this fresh new start we’re going to have,” Keisel said. “Honestly, when we can in it felt exactly like that – a fresh new start. We all have a new chance to show what we can do and show what Chadron State can do.  

To be successful, Kiesel said her team will need to focus and have the confidence to know they can win 10 games or more. 

Following the team’s scrimmage against Casper College, in Wyoming, Saturday, Stadler said she saw a lot of leadership out of the upper classmen. It was just their fourth day of practice and she was happy to see the team putting some of her new philosophies into practice. 

For the team to have success, Stadler said they need to focus on the little things. 

“Taking care of the ball a little better on our side and playing with a little more purpose behind our touches,” she said. “Then maybe being more aggressive at the net instead of being a little timid.”

Her team’s strengths, she said, are their energy and effort level. 

“I think the girls really do a good job of coming together and playing hard,” Stadler said. “Every day in our gym they’re going for everything and there’s a lot of effort.” 

She praised the Eagles’ communication and willingness to be coached in practice. 

Stadler doesn’t just coach to success on the court, she’s also concerned about her athletes performance away from volleyball. She’s had a long history of players achieving academic success. 

“My favorite part of coaching is the relationships I build with these kids,” she said. “I look to have them be successful off the court. You get that leadership and intangible things playing sports in college so I’m just hopefully helping them to learn about life and to push through so they can be successful after graduation.”

Stadler said the Chadron job is one she always said she would apply for if it came open. 

“I’d been at a (junior college) for a really long time and I wanted to coach at a four year for the last few years I was in Sheridan,” she said. She’d been waiting for an opportunity to advance and also stay in a region she was familiar with. 

“I like a small town,” she said. “I think it helps to have the community support. And I have two little kids so raising them in a small town is something I wanted.”