The Dixie State College volleyball team has gone through a number of head coaches in the past few years, but hopes are high this season with the new head coach Robyn Felder calling the shots.
Darice Pratt, the head volleyball coach last season, resigned from her position because her husband, Trent Pratt, was offered a coaching job with the Brigham Young University baseball team.
Junior outside hitter Kristin Heywood, a communication major from Portland, Ore., said Pratt resigned because she knew that’s what was best for her family, but it was tough for Pratt personally. She also said the team will miss Pratt, but it is excited for its season with Felder.
Felder has had years of experience with the sport of volleyball. She has recently spent a lot of her time coaching club volleyball teams. Felder also played college ball at Ricks College, which is now BYU-Idaho, and finished her volleyball career at Eastern Washington University in Cheney, Wash. She was named to the Big Sky Conference postseason team both her junior and senior year at Eastern Washington, and at the end of her senior year she was named Big Sky Newcomer of the Year after being the best hitter in the conference with a hitting percentage of .356.
The members of the team have had a hard time having three different coaches in the last three years, but they are excited for the chance to try something new.
“She is very disciplined on the court, and that’s what we need,” Heywood said. “We have a good balance of a positive coach and a disciplined coach. She’s a perfect balance of the two.”
Felder said she has enjoyed being at DSC so far, and she is planning on staying here for the long run.
“I’m loving it here,” Felder said. “It’s been awesome so far. The overall community has been great and is real sweet and has welcomed me into the Dixie family.”
Felder said she has high expectations for this season and is working on turning the Red Storm into a champion team. She said although the team is young, there are leaders on the court, and she is expecting them to take the team far this year.
Dixie State starts its season with the alumni game Sept. 1 in the Student Activities Center at 1 p.m.
