Match made in heaven: Cardinal Mooney beach volleyball team, new coach set their sights on state title
SARASOTA – After traveling around the globe playing and coaching beach volleyball for 20 years, Gretchen Hand feels certain she has truly found a place to call home.
The relationship between Hand and the Cardinal Mooney beach volleyball team looks like a match made in heaven, despite some mid-season upheaval.
Hand, who teaches at the school, took over the team after previous coach Chad Davis resigned on March 15. The Cougars were rolling at 7-1 at the time.
High School Roundup: Cardinal Mooney claims beach volleyball district title
And they kept right on rolling under Hand, finishing the regular season at 15-2, before defeating Sarasota Christian in a district semifinal and going on to win the Class A-District championship over Venice High.
“It was a huge change for us all of a sudden,” said Cougars team captain Helena Hebda. “I thought we handled it really well as a team. We did well at adapting.
“The coaches (Hand and assistant coach Julia Hanson) have done a great job of keeping us calm, and helping us through the process of changing coaches. We haven’t missed a beat and we continue to improve.”
After Hand played collegiately at Jefferson College in New Orleans and Missouri-St. Louis, her beach volleyball odyssey began full force. The St. Louis native has played professionally in Brazil, Colombia, Ireland and Thailand.
Hand’s head coaching jobs have included stops at UC-Davis, Missouri State, Webber and Fort Lauderdale High.
But it was a job as an assistant coach at Cardinal Mooney more than a decade ago that remained in the back of her mind.
“I absolutely love this community,” Hand said. “I came back here to raise my daughter (five-year-old Eva Elizabeth) in a faith-based community.
“The student-athletes, the faculty and staff, everybody has been tremendous. The players have been able to overcome any adversity. It just speaks to them as great humans.”
The players have been quick to rally around their new mentor.
“We are super close,” Cardinal Mooney junior Izzy Russell said. “We love the new coaches. They have been amazing. They have implemented a loving and caring atmosphere, building friendships on the team.
“It’s fun and competitive. We have gotten so much better with our skill levels.”
The next test for the Cougars is the beginning of the regional playoffs. They will host a foe still to be determined on Monday at 4 p.m.
“They are hungry to learn and have done everything we have asked of them,” Hand said. “This is a great place to raise my daughter. These girls are like having lots of big sisters.”
This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Beach volleyball: Cardinal Mooney, new coach set sights on state title
