|
Joel Stanford Expected to Produce Results at Haldane
New volleyball coach, one of many, has big shoes to fill
by Ray Gallagher
 | | (L-R) Seniors Megan Lyons and Caitlin McConville hope to jump for joy again in Glens Falls this November with new coach Joel Stanford at the helm |
|
Alas, my student athlete buddies: Time to put the PS2 Player down, get up off the couch (if you haven't already!) and whip your butts into shape before you're that kid we used to mock for tossing his Oreos on the first day of practice. Begin to get your wind back in order, rather than breaking wind on the couch, because you're going to need it the first couple of days when a host of varsity coaches at Haldane High and Putnam Valley begin cracking the whip.
It'll be like something some of you have never seen before: An entire practice run at a high-intensity level… the likes of which many newcomers will not be used to. Nowadays, athletes are being conditioned throughout an entire practice. For instance, what used to be a simple YMCA-style stretch drill consisting of old school squats thrusts and leg lifts might now be a 20-minute mobility drill and dynamic stretch routine designed to be quite a workout in and of itself. Most drills are run at full speed, often followed by conditioning circuits at the end of practice, including the dreaded ladders.
It's not like the ol' scenic tours we used to make our players run back in the day on the Put Valley campus in the wee '90s. It's serious business, y'all, so put this piece down upon conclusion, lace up your Air Jordans or your old Chuck Taylors (I see you ol'- schoolers at Haldane) and seek out your local track… pronto, Tonto! Go get your wind back, is all I'm saying.
Some coaches, like first-year Haldane volleyball coach Joel Stanford, prepared his team for the rigors of the upcoming year with a strong pre-season camp where intense workouts and fun were the order of the day. With tryouts just around the corner and a great week of volleyball camp at the Downstate Athletic Center in Peekskill last week, the Haldane High girl's volleyball team is looking awfully forward to defending their back-to-back Class C Section 1 and Region 1 titles while taking it one step further this fall when the Blue Devils take the court for keeps with an eye on their second NYS volleyball plaque (1998) to stack alongside the four NYS girl's basketball championships they've copped since 1989.
"I'm really excited about Haldane's prospects this season," said Stanford, who coached varsity volleyball previously at Bishop Lynch in Dallas, Texas. "We have a great group of girls and should be a very powerful team that we think can contend for the state title."
Stanford, who recently replaced former coach Tony Caldiero (working on as administrative degree), is no stranger to the girls on this team, having coached many of the starters on their 16-U Club Team, including senior mainstays Rachel Flaherty (setter), heavy hitters Megan Lyons and Caitlin McConville and libero Dannielle Etta. Stanford is one of what will be about 18 new coaches among the Haldane rank and file this school year. Other noteworthy programs seeking new varsity coaches, according to their recent advertisement in the PCN&R, include the current two-time Section 1 runner-up softball program, boy's lacrosse, girl's soccer, wrestling and boy's and girl's track and field: Some heavy turnover, for sure.
If Haldane Superintendent Dr. Mark Villanti weren't a busy man already, he is now… with a slew of coaching vacancies to fill.
In Stanford, Villanti's got himself a good one, according to several happy sources I've corresponded with. We know how that goes, though: Winning breeds happy kids and pleasant parents, while losing, even at the highest level sometimes, breeds hordes of malcontents. It's common all across America and increasing like global warming. Coaches are hoping parents will go green in an effort to quell the affects, but going green and spending green seem to have contradictory effects that leave guys like Dr. Villanti combing through piles of résumés.
Will having a new volleyball coach be an issue at Haldane? It shouldn't be, though continued instability could cripple some of the others if it happens repeatedly. Sports like wrestling and lacrosse cry for stability and feeders.
Luckily, Stanford has himself a battle-tested, hungry group of veterans, who have been to the state finals each of the past two years. Last year's team romped its way to Glens Falls, going undefeated until the final match of the season when Section 6 champion Randolph repeated as state champs. A poor start killed the Blue Devils that day, one from which they've spent the past 275 days or so trying to recover from. The summer camp was the first step toward changing their fortunes and erasing those painful memories, which followed a season in which the Blue Devils went 57-2 in 59 sets before falling 3-0 to the two-time defending state champion Cardinals. The only previous blemish on the Blue Devils' record last year was a 3-2 win over Pelham, if you can call that a blemish.
"The camp went very, very well at Downstate Athletic Club," Stanford said. "We had 16 girls working out. We should be very strong on defense and serve receive. We should be very strong attacking from the pins. We need a lot of work on our middle attack options. It's likely that Megan Lyons will be used more on the outside than from the middle. We've got a strong returning setter in Rachel Flaherty."
Seems the only thing the Blue Devils will have to guard against is overconfidence, something that has slain many a dragon?
Seniors Jenn Lombardo, Megan Spratt and Michelle Cotennec along with juniors Avery Zuvic, Holly Whiston and sophomore Irina Impellittiere look strong heading into tryouts and when teamed with the aforementioned foursome the unit sets up as downright imposing. That should help set up a good long run for Stanford and a shorter stack of paper work for the good doctor… one can only hope.
Please visit www.yourdirectrays.com for Section 1 sports photo galleries.
| Click ads below
for larger version
|
)