As the CoVid-19 Pandemic continues to spread and colleges across the country close, students and coaches mourn the premature end to the spring sports season. Casey Steinbrecher, the new women’s volleyball coach here at EMU, had just begun when COVID-19 cut his first season at EMU short.
Previously, Steinbrecher was a coach at JMU. He chose EMU because he needed a sports atmosphere that had a “less demanding travel schedule…When you have two young kids [travelling] is really tough [for] parents and kids especially.”
Another reason he chose EMU was for the tight knit community; at JMU “we were spread out all over campus and it was hard to connect on a regular basis with our busy schedules.” Here at EMU Steinbrecher feels a sense of “community, camaraderie, and support.”
When the position at EMU opened up, Steinbrecher was excited by the atmosphere the previous coach had fostered. “I think the culture that Carrie [Bert] has built here and the potential that this team and university have made it a very desirable job.” Bert was the previous coach.
He was very excited to start off the season with his new team. “I thought we were off to a great start in those first two practices … It’s a motivated and hardworking group … The team was very coachable and willing to make changes …We typically get 15 practices in the spring … Overall, based on the two practices, I think it was going to be a great spring.”
The biggest disappointment he felt when the season was cancelled was that he wouldn’t “have the chance to get to know the team as well as I had hoped going into the summer.” More specifically, they wouldn’t have the chance to develop “inside jokes, memories, and experiences that help build relationships.”
Junior Tori Wigley was disappointed about the abrupt end to the season. “We were all excited about this spring season with Coach Casey and were ready to get back out there to learn and play again,” Wigley said. “I hate that it was cut so short.”
Wigley said she was very excited about Steingbrecher coming over to EMU and that “he seems very laid back and easy going, but still means business at the same time … He has taken the time and effort to get to know each one of us too, which I really appreciate.”
Both Wigley and Steinbrecher said they were excited about the fall women’s volleyball season. Steinbrecher said, “I am hoping things get back to normal someday soon and we can get to work … Get excited for the 2020 fall volleyball season! We certainly are, and I think it’s fun to watch people do things they are passionate about like this group is.”
