COOK—After falling in a heartbreaker to Floodwood in last year’s Section 7A semifinals, the North Woods volleyball team knows they have what it takes to make another deep run in the section tournament.
Under the guidance of new head coach Kaileen Redmond, the Grizzlies will look to regroup in 2024 and plan to contend for the section crown by year’s end.
With the Grizzlies as an assistant coach since 2019, Redmond says applying for the head coaching position once it opened up felt like the right move for her.
“I’ve been coaching club ball since about 2016; both in Duluth and Maple Grove,” Redmond said. “It started as something to do in the winters to help pass the time and I grew really passionate about the game and helping develop players. I’ve been with [North Woods] as an assistant since 2019. When I first moved back to the area I knew I wanted to be involved in this program and help it grow and stay connected with the players. After five seasons with the program, [applying for the head coaching spot] felt like the next step when the position opened.
When it comes to her own coaching style, Redmond says she wants what she teaches her players to extend past volleyball and into real life. Coaching isn’t just about the sport and what’s immediately in front of the team.
“My priorities with my athletes are not only to develop them as players but to develop them as humans. As coaches, we are so influential to the next generation so I work toward leading with integrity and a strong work ethic to develop reliable, respected, and kind individuals. I feel that the team sees me busting it, working multiple jobs and still showing up for them every single day and they appreciate that and know that it, whatever ‘it’ is for them, can be done.
With the Grizzlies losing a large portion of their starting lineup to graduation, it would make sense if the team went into rebuild mode. Redmond says that doesn’t have to be the case.
“It’s no secret we were pretty impacted by graduating essentially our entire starting lineup. We had some incredible athletes. That’s the great thing about having a strong starting lineup is they were great leaders and influences on this next group of players coming through the program. They helped encourage, develop, and teach this next generation of Grizzlies to fill their roles and become great players themselves.
When it comes to leaders on this year’s team, Redmond says it was a trio of juniors who stepped up to try and guide the North Woods ship in Izzy Pascuzzi, Brynn Chosa and Lauren Burnett. When it came to selecting captains, Redmond wasn’t afraid to mix up the selection process.
“I changed up how captains were selected this year; the players needed to ‘apply.’ For no other reason but to make it a priority for them to advocate for themselves. I had three juniors apply, two of which are returning starting outsides from last year.
“All three captains have shown me they’re ready to advocate and work hard for this team, themselves, and the program so it was an easy decision selecting all three of them. Most of this year’s team saw some varsity time last season and they’ve done well preparing both myself and the new varsity players for what to expect. The captains, as well as my few seniors, have really stepped up in helping with our younger groups as well; teaching skills, talking confidence, and overall encouraging behavior for these incoming seventh and eighth graders.
One of the biggest challenges for North Woods will be replacing their setter Talise Goodsky (now playing at Minnesota North-Mesabi Range). For that, she’ll look to freshman Carsyn Burnett.
“I’m working to fill some big shoes in the setter role. Our last two varsity setters were long time players and learned under their predecessor. [That’s] no different with Carsyn Burnett stepping into this role as a freshman this year and learning the ins and outs of the varsity game
“She’s really excelled since playing JV for me last season. Her off season work is really showing. In addition, there are a few eighth graders showing great promise and I look forward to helping them grow over the next few months.
While she may know her team returns plenty of talent, Redmond believes that her squad can excel when it comes to certain intangibles as well as how well they communicate with each other on the floor.
“Accountability has been a huge strength of ours. Players aren’t out there blaming each other for this, that or another thing. They own up and say ‘yeah that was mine’ and make adjustments from there. It’s really made the team dynamic incredible to see.
“And then that’s where I’m seeing the tough situations iron out themselves because they’re out there telling each other it’s okay and working together to build each other up. It’s great to see.”
On the flipside the team will need to shore some things up defensively if they hope to compete with some of the tougher teams on their schedule.
“We have some defensive points to work on. Reviewing tape and seeing who we need to adjust a few steps here or there is going to be big for us in stepping up our defensive game.”
With all the old pieces returning, new pieces coming in and a new coach ready to set the bar high for her squad, Redmond says there’s no reason North Woods can’t make another deep run in the playoffs this year.
“I’m confident in this team setting their sights on another deep run and having the desire and work ethic to get there. If we continue in the direction we’ve been going the last few weeks, we’re going to have a successful season.”
Looking at the rest of the section, defending champion Ely and strong teams like Floodwood and Chisholm are ones that Redmond expects to contend this year. If her squad can compete with them, they’ll take on that challenge and fight to the bitter end.
“Ely and Floodwood both have some real competitive teams again this year. Aside from them, I’ve been seeing Chisholm really increase their scrappiness and pick on other teams weak spots. I think all four of us will be fighting it out till the end. That being said, I think the team sees these things too and their grit and determination will lead them through these tougher games.
“All in all, we have a great season ahead of us and I’m confident the team and I set some fun goals and will continue to work toward them together.”
Most Popular
Comments / 0