An Interview with Jenny Sims Get to know our new varsity beach volleyball coach, Jenny Sims. WORDS and PHOTO by FRANCES CARLSON Q: What first inspired you to become a teacher? A: I was born into an athletic family in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains of Asheville, North Carolina. My grandfather was drafted as a left handed pitcher by the Boston Red Socks and my grandmother coached my aunt to the 1972 Munich Olympics in swimming. My mom is a two-time Hawaiian IronMan finisher and currently holds the national title of second fastest female triathlete in her age group and still competes at age 70; my older sister was a three-sport highschool player and varsity college volleyball athlete. I attended a small private school called Carolina Day School pre-k through 12th grade and I always played three sports: volleyball, basketball, and soccer. I fell in love with team sports at a young age and felt most like myself at practice after school. In fact, the highlight of my day was always after school sports! I eventually got offered a scholarship to play Division 1 volleyball at UNC-Asheville my senior year of high school. Unfortunately, my freshman season got cut short due to needing to take time to focus on my mental health. As much as I loved playing volleyball for the Bulldogs, my mental health came first. I decided to take a gap year to travel, work, and heal. That’s when I first got into coaching and I fell in love with it. That was 10 years ago and I’ve been working with kids and coaching all levels of volleyball ever since!
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Q: How would you describe your coaching style? A: Coaching is definitely a passion of mine. It challenges me constantly, pushes me outside my comfort zone, and makes me strive to show up everyday as my very best for my team. My coaching style has evolved in many ways over the past 10 years, but two things have always stayed the same: I emphasize “Effort over Perfection,” and I strive to make great teammates. I care about each player I coach, and what matters most to me is the relationship I create with them. I want to be a role model to my girls and for them to feel I am always in their corner. I believe sports give you so much more than just an activity to do after school. I believe you learn how to be a better person through sports. You learn how hard work can pay off. You learn how to set goals and meet them. You learn how to be someone others can rely on. You learn how to push through learning a new, difficult skill and perseverance. You learn how to encourage others and work through hard times together. You learn to put others’ needs above your own and you learn responsibility and accountability. These skills are invaluable for athletes and it’s what makes my job so important to me. Q: How has your background as a volleyball player shaped your view of how to coach? A: As a player who started with indoor volleyball and has fully transitioned to the sand, I understand the challenge my girls are facing this
season. Most of my team at Laguna has never played on an organized beach volleyball team before. They are currently learning an entirely new sport that is vastly different from what they are used to indoors. As a student of the game myself, it’s an awesome thing to see my team start to make new connections and really buy into my knowledge of the sport, because that’s exactly what I had to do with my coach. I train at least four days a week with my coach, and I always gain such valuable knowledge I can turn around and teach my girls. I’m constantly thinking of ways to better myself and my team—it often keeps me up at night! Q: Did you have a specific coach who impacted your view on volleyball/life? If so, how? And how do you want to pass down those lessons, traditions, or goals onto this team? A: I’ve had three coaches in my life that have been incredibly impactful and have shaped everything I know about being a great athlete, teammate, and coach. When I think of these coaches who have touched my life in such immense ways, I feel tears come up, because that’s how powerful their influence still ripples out in me to this day. Coach Joe Carrington was the first coach who showed me a whole new level of team organization, preparation, and grit. He was my sophomore year basketball coach. He believed in me as an athlete and cared deeply for his each of his players. While playing for Joe, to thefourthestate.net
