HEN Lainey Jackson’s volleyball players step onto the court, everyone knows they’re the kind of team that goes the extra mile.
ATTEND A HOME GAME TO CHEER ON THE LAKERS! In addition to volleyball, other Laker athletic teams include men’s basketball, women’s basketball, baseball, softball, cheerleading and clay target shooting. Admission to all home games is free to currently enrolled Lake Land College students, $7 for adults and $5 for students in grades K-12 and senior citizens. Visit lakelandlakersathletics.com to find out when the next home game is happening!
SCAN TO WATCH JACKSON'S FULL INTERVIEW.
authority, but to truly be a coach. For her, that involves empathy, care and a genuine desire to build unique relationships with each and every player.
Now, Jackson seeks to implement this coaching philosophy at Lake Land, helping her players navigate the challenges “I want my players to be the kind of they face on the court and in all people who are always facets of life. She views these doing something to take the extra step, not just "I WANT MY PLAYERS experiences as opportunities for with volleyball, but with TO BE THE KIND OF her players to gain the wisdom that will guide their actions both everything in life,” said PEOPLE WHO ARE throughout the season and long Jackson, the new Lake ALWAYS DOING after graduation. The goal is a Land volleyball head SOMETHING TO team that represents everything it coach. “If you’re at the means to be a Laker and is defined grocery store and see a TAKE THE EXTRA cart out in a parking spot, STEP, NOT JUST WITH by a work ethic so palpable it transcends any win or loss. push it back.” After four all-conference seasons at Cumberland High School, Jackson played college volleyball at Lincoln Land Community College.
VOLLEYBALL, BUT WITH EVERYTHING IN LIFE." “We are always going to push the
other team, and we will always push ourselves just as much,” she -JACKSON said. “Whether we win or whether we lose, there will be no question that we worked harder than them.”
There, she compiled an impressive résumé that includes Midwest Athletic Conference Freshman of the Year and NJCAA AllAmerican honors. Following her time at Lincoln Land, a season-long stint of playing in Mississippi at Blue Mountain College only confirmed that there was nowhere she would rather be than back home in the community she loves. Jackson continued her volleyball career in central Illinois as a coach for Teutopolis High School and 217 Volleyball Club. Through these roles, she has learned what it means to not just hold a position of
10 LAKE LAND COLLEGE s LAKELANDCOLLEGE.EDU
That assertive presence is the chief priority in Jackson’s approach to the game, more so than any record come season’s end. Her players are more than just talented athletes. They are rising leaders who set the standard everywhere they go, whether it is on the court, in the classroom, or even at the grocery store. To follow Laker volleyball and all other Lake Land athletics, visit lakelandlakersathletics.com.
