With that in mind, administrators at Whitman College breathed a collective sigh of relief when Dean Snider joined the athletic department earlier this month as the new head coach of the women's volleyball program.
Snider, 31, was the head women's coach the past four seasons at Western Washington University in Bellingham. He replaces Eddie Matthews, who resigned late last spring to take a temporary position with the U.S. women's national team as it prepared for the Summer Olympics in Atlanta. Following the Olympics, he accepted the head coaching position at Southern Georgia University.
Snider, a native of Winnipeg, Manitoba, directed coaching Western Washington's volleyball program while completing his master's degree in exercise science with a concentration in sports psychology.
Snider earned his bachelor's degree in communications and history at Trinity Western University, a small private college in Langley, British Columbia. While at Trinity Western, he lettered in each of his four seasons as a setter on the men's volleyball team. He later coached the men's team for three seasons, leading his alma mater to a provincial title and a third-place finish in the Canadian national championships during the 1991-92 season.
Snider's combined won-loss record at Western Washington and Trinity Western was an impressive 121-64.
"Dean is a high-quality coach and person," Whitman dean of faculty Pat Keef said. "Whitman is extremely fortunate to have found him on such short notice. He brings excellent head coaching experience to our program."
Athletic director Max Seachris said Snider also will serve as the assistant men's tennis coach and teach theory classes in the physical education department.
"Dean is an exciting young coach who had an excellent record at both Western Washington and Trinity," Seachris said. "He also is very interested in teaching. He's going to fit in very well here."
Snider plans to stress team play, consistency and discipline at Whitman.
"Volleyball is one of the ultimate team games," he said. "You can have individual players who shine, but your team is only as good as the least of those individuals. You have to work very hard at team building and role playing."
One of the keys to strong team play is "individual consistency of response," Snider said. "Each player must respond consistently to the same situations, so that everyone can rely on everyone else to do their job."
Snider also likes to "run a fast game that can turn transition quite quickly, and I like to adjust the speed of a game at times, using that as a tactic."
He plans to make good use of his educational background in sports psychology.
"Even though sports psychology is not a cure-all, it is something that can help improve your stability and performance," he said. "Everyone works on the technical and tactical aspects of their game, but not everyone works on the mental aspects. In a game like volleyball, where the fewest mistakes often makes the difference between winning and losing, mental stability becomes very important."
In addition to his master's degree concentration in sports psychology, Snider received training in that field while earning his national coaching certification in Canada. "If you coach in Canada, you are trained in the mental aspects of sport. You are taught to teach your athletes mental toughness."
The performance enhancement techniques used in sports psychology can be used in all aspects of life, Snider said. "The business world in particular has taken notice."
Whitman returns a solid nucleus of volleyball players from last season, when the Missionaries battled a series of health problems en route to a 6-22 season. "I remember very clearly playing Whitman a year ago," Snider said. "I was watching them warm up, hoping my team wasn't going to take them lightly. It was obvious they had some excellent athletes who hit the ball hard and move very well."
Returning players include junior Stephanie Meier and sophomore Mandy Rockwell, each of whom earned honorable mention all-conference honors last year. Also back are junior Donna Hager, who gives the squad another strong presence in the middle, and talented junior setter Wendy Wilford, who returns after injuries sidelined her last season.
Snider was raised in Langley, British Columbia, a suburb of Vancouver. He graduated from Langley Secondary School where he earned team Most Valuable Player honors during his junior and senior seasons.
At Trinity Western, Snider was captain and MVP during his senior
season, leading his
teammates to a second-place finish in the province. In his three years of
coaching at Trinity
Western, his squad captured the school's first-ever province title and
nearly won a second
championship. Snider earned province coach-of-the-year honors in 1991.
Snider and his wife Darlene have three children -- Madison, 5; Kennedy, 2; and Bailey, three months.
If you have questions about Whitman's intercollegiate volleyball
program,
or if you want information about the men's or
women's
intramural and
club sport volleyball programs at Whitman,
please click here to send an e-mail message to
head volleyball coach Dean Snider.
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