2021 marks Varsity volleyball coach Dave Hall's 23rd season with the Stags. We sat down with him to hear more about his career, and hitting a big milestone: winning 30 or more games every year since he's coached with Kingsley.
Q: What is your coaching philosophy, and has it changed over the years?
A: Oh my goodness, that's a tough question! I guess the biggest thing for me is, is trying to get the most out of the talent that we have. I used to get all hung up on, you know, 'we have to win 50 games, and we have to win six tournaments,' and now, it's more just try to over achieve with the talent level we have. The kids are really working hard and playing together and we're getting a lot of mileage out of kids that are just hard workers.
Q: What values or culture do you try to foster on your team?
A: Our biggest thing is just team; sacrifice for the team and do everything you can for team success. Volleyball in general is kind of a family feel. Because you're in the gym all day, and every Saturday you're together, so we really kind of preach the family aspect and enjoy time together.
Q: Would you say there's a year, or moment, or season that stands out as one of your successes?
A: The one that came really early in my career. My fifth year we lost in the state finals, and we were state runner up in '04.
Q: How would you describe this year's team in terms of personality?
A: Really scrappy and defensive. We serve really hard. I think they played really well together and really hard and very together.
Q: Does your team have any mottos or rallying cries?
A: On the state finals team, we started preaching what we call 'no floor volleyball.' We try to play the defense where you can't find a place to put the ball on the floor on our side. There's gonna be a hand and arm a foot something there. There's not going to be any floor over here for you to get the ball down on. So we say that in every huddle, every timeout, that this is 'no floor volleyball.'
Q: What is your favorite part about being a Kingsley coach?
A: Just seeing the kids get better, going from day one to the end of the season to see the growth. You know, it's it's really rewarding to see all their hard work turn into success on the court.
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