A change of scenery
Bryce Alderton
Ruth Laneman didn’t have much time from August 28, when she took
the head coaching job for Estancia’s girls volleyball team, and
Tuesday when her Eagles are at La Quinta to open the season, but
that’s all right by her.
“We’ll have to hit the floor running, I guess,” Laneman said with
a slight chuckle, referring to Estancia’s first two matches against
La Quinta Tuesday and against visiting Santiago Wednesday at 3:15
p.m. “It’s been challenging and exciting. I enjoy meeting the girls
and keying-in on their personalities. They’re all working hard and
improving every day.”
Every day Laneman, who moved to Irvine in January from Maryville,
Tenn., where she coached at Maryville High for six years, goes to
work as a physical education teacher at Newport Harbor High in the
morning and then hurries over to Estancia in the afternoon to coach
the Eagles.
She got the PE teaching job at Newport a week prior to the school
year, and said the Newport Harbor administration was more than
supportive of her prior commitment to coach the Eagles.
“I appreciated the administration over at Harbor, they were very
generous,” she said. “It’s fun being at both schools.”
Laneman has noticed in the nine months she’s been in California
that more people play year-round than in Tennessee, but also said
players who want to excel and improve will play more, such as on club
teams.
“(Players) putting the time into it and seeking the skills has
been the same no matter where I’ve been,” said Laneman, who has
coached and taught high school volleyball for 10 years in Tennessee,
Missouri and Indiana. “At least half of the team played during the
summer.”
This year’s edition of the Eagles includes three returners off
last year’s unit.
Seniors Laura Morton and Dustine Lau, along with sophomore
Courtney Fletcher will give the Eagles experience.
“We’re in a new league so I don’t know what to expect,” Laneman
said. “What I do see from the girls is a lot of hard work trying to
find them positions.”
Laneman can also look forward to two more seniors in middle
blocker/outside hitter Katherine Nelson and middle blocker Tori
Girod, a transfer from Ohio.
“(Girod) brings quite a bit of skill and enthusiasm to the team,”
Laneman said.
Junior middle blocker Joy Prebyl and sophomores Hilary Ockey,
Hillary Larsen and Bezabeth Vazuaz join with two promising freshmen
on Laneman’s squad.
Cheslea Kaplan and Muriel Mason are also in the mix.
“They’re very coachable and they’re all willing to learn,” Laneman
said. “We’ve got a ways to go yet to find out what works, but I think
we’ll be very competitive. If you work hard in practice, that’s how
you’re going to play in the game. My job as a coach is to see what
their abilities are and make them the best they can be. Once they get
on the court, it’s their match.”
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