App State grad and coach on the importance of family and sports

Sarah Willadsen has played volleyball since 5th grade, received offers to play collegiately, and eventually chose to come to Appalachian State to play club volleyball. Now, the circle of sports life has turned her into a coach as she begins her first season coaching the Club Synergy 17U Zonals, a travel volleyball team based out of Boone, North Carolina.

During Willadsen’s playing days, having support from her family left a positive impact on her ability to play, even though her parents had to divide their time between multiple children playing multiple sports.

“I loved when my parents and brothers came to watch me play because it said to me that they cared,” said Willadsen, an Appalachian State graduate of December 2016. “My mom grew up playing volleyball and very rarely missed any [of my] games, so that was special to be able to share that passion with her.”

Sarah Willadsen (front row, white jersey) with the
2015 Appalachian State club volleyball team

Even as a first-time coach, Willadsen understands how interaction with her athletes can directly influence how they perform well, not just as a team, but as a family.

“The more I interact with them, especially in one-on-one settings, the better I am getting to know who they are as a person and as a volleyball player,” said Willadsen. “For the other coach and myself, we are the authority figures, aka parents sometimes, who care for the girls, but also need to be respected and listened to as we coach them.”

Establishing a relationship as teammates during practice and games is important, but Willadsen stresses how bonding away from the court is valuable to form better team chemistry.

As she spent her playing days as a libero and a defensive specialist, Willadsen said that she finds it easier to interact with members of Club Synergy who play the same positions as she once did.

The 17U Zonals have only competed in two tournaments in their young season, but Willadsen already notices how important family support is to her athletes, just as it was important to her.

“Most of [the players] want their parents to be there and they, in turn, play better,” said Willadsen. “They play better when their parents are invested, encouraging them, and also yelling at them to be more aggressive, go for balls, etc. The other coach and I are closer to their age, but there's definitely a feel of wanting to impress both us and the parents.” 

Willadsen can also see the different kind of relationships parents have with their children.

“A few of the moms especially have a little bit of a teenage mind, and I have seen them gossip with their daughters about other players on the team,” said Willadsen. “One girl in particular has more of a broken family and she is one that sometimes needs extra attention.”

The Club Synergy 17U Zonals are members of the Club Synergy Junior National Volleyball Club and are made up of mostly Watauga High School players. They compete in tournaments in western North Carolina and eastern Tennessee and have three more tournaments left on their schedule including the K2 Wilderness Challenge starting February 11 in Sevierville, Tennessee.