Tweet

Behind every successful collegiate sports team is a strong foundation. At Grand View, this foundation includes fans, players, trainers, the school, the athletic director and most importantly, the coaches. The coaches are there for every step of the process. From the vigorous workouts and practices to the huge smiles and tears after a victory, coaches are the backbones of our sports teams. Some could even say the coaches are GV’s secret to success. 

How coaches attain that success varies. According to an article published by Ohio University, there are three sports coaching styles: autocratic, democratic and holistic. 

Autocratic coaching is when the coach operates as a dictator of the team. In this style, the coach would typically be the only one who has input and can make decisions for the team. 

“The coach has ultimate say in regards to how the team acts and plays,” the article stated. 

On the other hand, democratic coaching involves more communication and team involvement. 

The article also states that “coaches who use the democratic style encourage players to voice their opinions and thoughts in order to make the best decisions.” 

Generally, with this style of coaching, the majority of teams have stronger relationships and a closer bond. 

However, the article stated that if a coach gives the team too much input, this can cause a variety of issues like favoritism, undermining the coach and wasting valuable time. 

Holistic coaching takes the approach of the coach not solely focusing on the sport at hand, but focusing on the players’ lives overall. 

“It is a style that considers aspects beyond the athlete’s physical and mental states such as their emotional and spiritual states.” 

This means that the coach takes the time to build a relationship with every single one of his or her athletes, creating transparency and trust outside of the track, court, field, alley or mat. 

The downfall of this coaching style is that it can be exhausting. As a result of going the extra mile and working to create and nurture personal relationships, coaches can become mentally and emotionally drained.  

Multiple coaches at Grand View approach coaching holistically. One of these coaches is Lou Yacinich. He has been coaching softball for about 20 years. Before he coached, he played baseball and men’s fast-pitch softball. He said his personal experience playing, competing and understanding the sport aids his coaching career. Even though he wants his players to do well on the field, he also wants them to succeed in life.

“I like to be a teacher of the game — a teacher of life,” Yacinich said. 

As a coach, Yacinich said he tries to expose his players to as many different views of life as possible. He narrows in on things such as strength and conditioning, workouts, practices and games but also builds his players up so they can be productive citizens later on in life.   

With coaching, there is always room for improvement, and Yacinich said being able to connect with the younger generations is a main concern for him. 

Yacinich said he is always trying to relate to the new athletes coming in because the older he gets, the further in age he is from his athletes. 

 Unlike some teams at GV, the softball program has its own playing philosophy. 

“Our program’s foundational pillars are (to) eliminate drama and play tough,” Yacinich said. “Those are very simple, yet they encompass a lot of different things. We think that those pillars in life will help them be productive citizens.”

Yacinich said that with this philosophy, he does see results in his players. 

He also said the longer his players have been in the program, the more he lets them have a say in things. 

“As they are in the program longer, you understand the culture, understand what we are trying to accomplish, and you become part of that, especially if you believe in it,” Yacinich said. “When that happens, people will ask for your input or advice.”

According to Yacinich, the team’s success is all because of his players. 

Wrestling coach Nick Mitchell is another great example of the holistic coaching style. Mitchell has been coaching wrestling for 18 years. He has been at GV since the wrestling program started about 10 years ago. Not only did Mitchell wrestle in high school, but he also competed in college which shows in his coaching style and benefits his players.  

“I try to do a better job of coaching to how each athlete needs to be coached because they are not all like me,” Mitchell said. “I could look back on mistakes that I’ve made and things I wish I would’ve done different, and those are things that help me preach to these guys.”

 One of Mitchell’s values as a coach is communication.

“I talk to our guys every day,” Mitchell said. “I think I communicate well with them.”

Mitchell also said he is intentional about continuing this communication with his wrestlers, post-graduation — a trait of a true holistic coach.

“One thing I’ve been trying to focus on in the last year is continuing to do a good job communicating with guys after they graduate,” Mitchell said. “I just want to make sure they know that I’m still there to help them out when they are done competing for us.”

GV wrestler George Benoit has been in the sport since fifth grade. He came to GV after having a high school coach with more of an autocratic style of coaching, which made him afraid to lose. 

“(Mitchell) cares about the players,” Benoit said. 

Benoit explained how he thinks about the sport, and life, now.

“It’s giving your all in everything in your life,” Benoit said. “You have to just give it your all and that’s when good things happen.”

Although many coaches at GV offer a holistic style, there are a handful who identify with a mixture of styles. A perfect example would be Jerry Monner, head coach of cross country and track and field.

Monner’s coaching style seems to be a mix of democratic and holistic. He has been coaching at GV for 15 years but has 20 years of experience total. Like other coaches, Monner also competed in these sports during his high school and college years.  

Not only does Monner offer his personal experience but he also always tries to be open, available and approachable. 

“I feel like I do a pretty good job of being open with the athletes and being available to them,” Monner said. “I always try to get their input on how they are feeling with their training and if they feel like they are getting what they need out of their training.” 

Although Monner values his teams’ input, none of this would be possible without a plan and structure. 

“I’ve always been big on laying out our entire season, laying out some major checkpoints throughout it; and on a weekly basis, we have a plan laid out as well,” Monner said. “We can’t just go into a season or into a practice like, ‘Oh what are we going to do today?’”  

This year, the teams have pretty clear objectives.

“We always want to make sure we are competing for a conference championship,” Monner said. “We’ve had some really good success at that since I’ve been here, so it’s just kind of getting the team and getting them prepared to know that they can go out and compete for a conference title.” 

Besides competing for a title, another team objective is ensuring that everyone is reaching their personal goals.  

“Success from some (of) our athletes is running a personal best time or getting a personal best jump, where other athletes are challenging themselves to be better than conference champs or to make it (to nationals).” 

Cross country and track athlete Michaela Barretta has been running since she was 9 years old. Barretta said she believes her coaches truly listen to and value their athletes. 

“I have multiple coaches for the cross country and track team,” Barretta said. “They are all amazing coaches. (They are) very supportive through everything (and) very understanding in wanting school to come first and then focusing on athletics.”

Barretta also said that she and her teammates can talk to their coaches, who are understanding and want to listen. 

“They are always asking how school is going, how our weekend was or if we had any tests that day … just always asking questions about things like that,” she said. 

Barretta said that their coaching style makes being there more enjoyable, even if that means staying at practice or workouts later than anticipated. 

There are coaches at GV that fall under the holistic or democratic styles, but there are also some coaches who are a mix of all three. One of these coaches is Kelli Greenway who coaches the women’s basketball team. Greenway just entered her 10th year of coaching basketball, with half of those years being at GV. 

She played the sport at the junior college level at North Iowa Area Community College before becoming a manager for the University of Iowa women’s basketball team. She uses her experience on and off the court to help her student-athletes.

 “There are coaches in basketball that didn’t play basketball, and you can study the game without actually playing it,” Greenway said. “But I do think that going through the experience helps you relate with the student-athletes that you are coaching.” 

Greenway said that her other strengths as a coach are that she motivates, stays positive and communicates. 

Although she has had her fair share of success as a coach, she does admit the importance of always improving. 

“I think that it’s important to continue to learn and study the game and kind of dive into how the game’s changing and adapting to that and bring that to our student-athletes,” Greenway said. 

Although basketball is important, she tries to make sure her athletes have a fair balance. Her off-court goals for them are that they work toward being great teammates and keeping faith and family first, if it applies to them. 

“We really try to emphasize a balance of being a high-quality student when you’re in the gym, committing yourself to your team and your teammates when it’s basketball season, then also getting involved outside of school and basketball to kind of keep you well rounded,” Greenway said. 

Greenway said the “ultimate dream goal” would be to win a national championship, which is what the team is currently working toward. 

Although this is Greenway’s first year as head coach, she has known most of her players since they started at GV and has been able to connect with them. 

“Kelli has had to fill a lot of different roles (over the years), but overall I have a really good relationship with her,” said senior Jessi Campbell. 

Campbell, who has been playing basketball since third grade, said she feels a coach has a big impact on how players play. 

“The level of support, their accessibility, their communication, their approachability, it all affects how you play,” she said.

Although different sports require different approaches, a coach can be an athlete’s most influential ally. The coaches at Grand View have taken the time to explore and establish what style they believe works for their players. They make an effort to stay up to date on the evolution of their sports and the changes in the younger generations coming in, trying to improve themselves. Their hard work is the fuel of Grand View’s award-winning sport teams.