Girls’ volleyball started their fall season with camps and tryouts during summer before school started, but this year the program has changed due to their entirely new coaching staff.

In previous years, Mitzi Kincaid, who also coaches club volleyball at Tstreet Volleyball Club, has coached the varsity team, but last year was her final year before she retired from coaching high school volleyball.

The varsity team won the South Coast League last year and moved on to CIF, but were eliminated in the second round. This year, the first league game is on September 22 and all league games will be every Tuesday and Thursday, either home or away.

The varsity team hopes to win the South Coast league again and to advance further into CIF this year.

The new coaches, who came from Prime Volleyball Club, are listed below.

Varsity:

Head Coach- Jessica Papell

Assistant Coach- Michael Brunsting

Junior Varsity:

Head Coach- Curt Mahle

Freshman/Sophomore A:

Head Coach- Kenneth Lim

Freshman/Sophomore B:

Head Coach- Wendy Whiting

Head varsity coach Jessica Papell has coached at Island Thunder Volleyball Club (ITVC) in Seattle, Washington and at Prime Volleyball Club. She also was the head varsity coach at University High School.

Assistant Coach Michael Brunsting has past coaching experience at Francis W. Parker School, Cathedral Catholic High School, La Jolla Volleyball Club, Shorebreak Volleyball Club, Prime Volleyball Club, and Orange Coast Volleyball Club (OCVC).

The program faces new changes this year with the new coaches. Not only are the coaches inputting different perspectives, but the team will also work on weightlifting and strength training with Coach Parks on Mondays and Wednesdays after practice to further their skills and development.

Coach Papell will not be changing the practicing style drastically, but she believes in a thoughtful approach to playing. “Our focus is more on being mindful and focused on specific technical and tactical improvements during each drill throughout practice,” said Coach Papell.

The varsity team has also put this mindfulness to practice at home. Coach Papell assigns videos for the varsity girls to watch and review at home to improve their mental game and later, the team discusses it during practice time.

Coach Brunsting looks forward to incorporating new routines into the varsity team practices and games. “Visualizing success before every game is one of the most valuable things we can do with our time before matches,” Coach Brunsting said.

Coach Brunsting, naturally, expects some challenges to face the team. “Our ability to focus on our short term and long term goals at practice [will be a challenge]. Practicing or playing five days a week is not easy and there are plenty of distractions during this time in their lives,” said Coach Brunsting.

“I’m excited because with a new coach you get new input and a different view on how you play. I think it’s interesting because you can apply many different techniques to your play from different coaches,” said Gabriella MacAdam, senior and co-captain.

Coach Brunsting commented on the differences between club and high school coaching. “High school coaching, on the other hand, allows me to emphasize more team bonding and camaraderie,” Coach Brunsting said.

The team will have team dinners before games on Tuesdays and Thursdays to focus on team bonding and to work together before the next game.

As both a club and high school coach, Coach Papell understands the differences in the bonding aspects of the high school team. “There is also something really special about getting to represent your school and play matches with and in front of your friends at school,” Coach Papell said.

“What I’m most excited for about my new coaches is that I get a new experience and luckily I love them, so it’s good to get more coaches opinions on how I play before I go off and play in college,” said fellow senior and co-captain Phia Bellizzi.

One sadness that both the coaches and all girls volleyball teams have is the lack of school spirit and crowd attendance.

“We want more students to come to our matches to create a more exciting and energetic environment in the gym! I guarantee if you come to a match, you will enjoy watching your studly classmates,” said Coach Papell.