GIRL POWER Schindler, Wilson share common threads in building women’s athletic programs

Schindler, Wilson share common threads in building women’s athletics programs

BY PHIL RIDDLE

They have a lot in common.

Both are the product of Tarleton athletics. Both are recognized leaders in women’s NCAA Division II sports who see a bright future for women coaches in all sports.

Women’s Head Basketball Coach Misty Wilson and Head Volleyball Coach Mary Schindler both bleed purple from their days as student athletes.

Wilson arrived on campus in 1997 and never left, playing basketball for and then serving as an assistant coach under Claude Cummings, then working for Ronnie Hearne for 12 seasons.

Just finishing her fourth season as head coach of the TexAnns, she has established her program as among the best in the Lone Star Conference.

The TexAnns finished the season 20-12, the first 20-win season under Wilson and the first 20-win season since 2013-14. That is coming off a breakthrough 2016-17 campaign when she led Tarleton to its first LSC conference tournament title and an appearance in the NCAA regional tournament.

Wilson’s career as a player and her early time on the sideline were spent with Cummings, and she said she’s thankful for that opportunity. But working for Hearne was transformative.

“I learned so much from Coach Hearne,” she said. “I worked for him for 12 years. I really learned a great deal about basketball from him, how to manage the job and family.”

She began her purple run as a terrific player. She is the sixth-best scorer in Tarleton history, playing in 103 games from 1998 to 2001. She scored 1,440 career points and was the season scoring leader three years in a row.

Schindler’s first year in Stephenville was 2000. Just five years later, after four seasons on the volleyball court for the TexAnns, she took over the program. She has earned conference Coach of the Year honors twice and capped last year with a 29-6 record and No. 20 national ranking.

She remembers the support of Athletic Director Lonn Reisman in her early days in charge of the volleyball team.

“He was a mentor, even though it was a different sport,” she said. “He’d won a lot, and he was so supportive. It was great to have someone to tell you, win or lose, you were going to be OK. It was one of the best things I could ask for, starting out.”

Schindler has compiled a 234-148 record and reached the Lone Star Conference Championship Tournament in 10 of her 12 years, including seven straight postseason berths and one tournament championship. She also led Tarleton to its first NCAA tournament appearance in 2014 and repeated the accomplishment in 2015.

She and Wilson understand the expectation of success, as well as the specific issues women in sports face.

“I think the biggest challenge is to get a balance,” Schindler said. “I don’t think there’s anything that makes it more difficult to be successful as a woman, but I think fewer women are in coaching at the college level because of the balance between family and work.

Girl Power

Girl Power

Women’s Head Basketball Coach Misty Wilson

“I feel very blessed. Our program here is about family. My son is able to be in the gym with me, and I’m able to find the balance between attending his events and him being at mine.”

Wilson concurs. “The expectations (for both men and women coaches) are the same. You’re expected to win. However, I think the demands on female coaches may be brought on by yourself. Sometimes you feel more of a pull from the domestic part of your life.”

Coach Wilson has three daughters, each involved in a different stage of athletics.

“Managing your time and feeling like you’re contributing as much as you feel you need to for your family and to the program are challenging at times,” she said.

Both coaches share an excitement for the future in women’s coaching, pointing to Becky Hammon of the San Antonio Spurs, the first female assistant in the NBA, and the opportunities for women in powerhouse men’s programs.

“I don’t know that’s something I’d be interested in, but I do think it will happen,” Schindler said. “The Spurs, a premier organization, have a woman on their staff. They’re setting a trend.”

Wilson watches men’s games on TV and often thinks the teams could benefit from a woman coach. Men and women just see things differently.

“There are a ton of women’s coaches who contribute a great deal to the fundamental part of the men’s basketball game,” she said. “With the Spurs’ assistant, the more headway she makes there, the more people’s eyes will be opened.”

Wilson and Schindler agree on another thing: Working at Tarleton has great perks, among them the TexAnns’ supporters.

“Our fans are relentless,” Wilson said. “I have to scream at the top of my lungs during time outs so my team can hear me. That makes a huge difference to players.”

Same for the volleyball team’s visiting opponents.

“Any volleyball coach who has played in our gym will attest to the fact we have the best fans,” Schindler said. “They make it the toughest environment to play in.”

Not surprisingly, the coaches have a common goal for their programs.

They answered the question in unison.

“More winning!”