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GCCISD Magazine Feature: Q&A with GCM Volleyball Coach Michael Williams
MICHAEL WILLIAMS IS NOT NEW ONTO THE COACHING SCENE. THE VETERAN COACH HAS HAD MULTIPLE SUCCESSFUL STOPS, INCLUDING ONES AT CARTHAGE, KINGWOOD PARK AND MOST RECENTLY HUFFMAN. WE CAUGHT UP WITH THE NEW GCM HE AD COACH PRIOR TO THE BEGINNING OF THE 2020 SE ASON.
VYPE: You took Carthage to the 2003 state tournament. Do you look back on that team in particular to take notes of what worked as you go year to year?
Williams: "No doubt. You know what it takes. It's a lot of hard work and a little bit of luck too. You always compare your teams to them. What do we need to work on to get back to that spot? Let's be honest, every team in Texas has the goal of going there."
VYPE: What made GCM a place you wanted to come to be the next head coach?
Williams: "Well, ever since I moved back to the Houston-area, the teams I've coached have either been in a district with GCM or we've competed against them somewhere at tournaments. I'm very familiar with the school and the program since it opened. Whenever Coach Veen moved on to Barbers Hill, I knew what they had and thought this would be a good opportunity in the area."
VYPE: You got this job during a global pandemic when people couldn't be around others for a long time. How did you approach getting to know your new team through it?
Williams: "It's been difficult because we had several instances this summer where we started strength and conditioning and then got canceled because of an outbreak. There were a lot of inconsistencies. We've been going good since August 3 and it's been nice because you've been able to slow things down. [Because of the delayed start to the season] we had five or six weeks where we were able to take our time, work on the fundamentals of the game and teach them the way I want them to play the game."
VYPE: When you look at this GCM roster, there are some key players including Taylor Kotlarz and Zoe Martinez.
Williams: "Taylor is a very dynamic outside hitter, she's a big gun. There's not a lot of schools that have a Taylor hitting outside for them. So, I'm very fortunate to have that. Zoe is a very good setter, very accomplished. She's capable of running the offense we want to run. She does a great job. She's a very good leader, runs the team, very calm, cool and collected."
To see the entire Goose Creek CISD publication, CLICK HERE
GCCISD Magazine Feature: Goose Creek Memorial Volleyball
WHEN MICHAEL WILLIAMS HEARD THERE WAS AN OPENING AT GOOSE CREEK MEMORIAL HIS INTEREST WAS PIQUED.
This wouldn't be Williams first-ever head-coaching gig, it just had been a minute since he had held down that first chair on the bench. After being an assistant at Huffman the past few years, Williams decided it was time to take the reins of another program. "I've wanted to be a head coach again," Williams said. "I just felt like this was a good opportunity and a good place to be."
It's a program that has had its fair share of success – including making seven straight playoff appearances heading into this fall. Heading into a new job in the middle of a global pandemic can be challenging, even for a coach who is returning to the same program in 2020. But for a new coach it can be even more so.
The good thing for Williams is he had a few core players to build around – Taylor Kotlarz and Zoe Martinez. The outside hitter-setter combo is two of the names to remember inside the Patriot ranks but there is also a number of players who are also moving to new spots. The extra five weeks of preparation prior to the season is paying off for them.
"We did have several returning players but Zoe, Taylor and Sarina Garcia are the only ones returning playing the same positions," Williams said. "Kaitlyn Herrera was a libero last year and she's transitioned to be an outside hitter. So, basically out of 10 girls on varsity, I've got seven girls playing in a position or with a team they haven't played before. "So, it's been good to develop a little rhythm and continuity with them getting them used to playing with each other on the court."
If the Patriots can piece it all together, the 2020 season will mark an eighth straight playoff appearance and first playoff game victory since 2017.
To see the entire Goose Creek CISD publication, CLICK HERE