New coach for Soaring Eagle volleyball

Friday, Sep. 05, 2014

Stephanie Jones comes to Juan Diego Catholic High School as the girls head volleyball coach this year with experience coaching indoor volleyball and beach club volleyball, elite volleyball camps and clinics and the USA Volleyball High Performance program.  

Jones, who played in high school, on an elite club and college volleyball at Westminster College, has coached High Performance Beach Volleyball at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, Calif., and coached with the Russian Youth National Beach Volleyball team. At the Olympic Training Center, Jones worked with youth training to be future Olympians, collegiate and post-collegiate and professional players.

The Soaring Eagle team will be Jones’ first time coaching a high school. Jones is adapting the various offensive and defensive volleyball systems and training styles she has observed into the Soaring Eagle training plan, she said. The team played its first tournament in Saint George Aug. 29-30; they had their first home match against Brighton High Sept. 2.

“The girls on the team are not that tall, so we will focus on quick defensive work as opposed to using raw power,” Jones said, adding that, off the court, she also likes to focus on service work. The team completed the ALS Ice Challenge and raised more than $300 for an organization that does not do embryonic stem cell research. The Soaring Eagle volleyball team also volunteered at the Utah Food Bank Aug. 23 for a couple of hours, Jones said. 

“The Food Bank gave the athletes an opportunity to bond as well as to develop into productive and well-balanced young women,” she said. “It is the directive at JDCHS to develop the whole student athlete and give them a vehicle to succeed through sports, but it is important to me, in particular, that they have opportunities to get involved in the community. As athletes they are ambassadors for the school, the faith and student athletes in general. It is important that they understand there are many aspects involved in being productive and well-balanced members of society.”