Jessica Whitaker, coach of the Lady Wolves, to retire

Jessica Whitaker started playing volleyball in the sixth grade. She fell out of the sport after graduating from Wrangell High School in 2003, she attended college in Colorado, but came back to Wrangell and got involved with the school's volleyball program again in 2005. She started coaching the middle school volleyball team, and in 2006 started helping with the high school program. In 2007 she was made the head coach for the Lady Wolves, the high school team. This season, however, she will be stepping down for what she says is "hopefully" a temporary retirement.

"Since '05 to now, a whopping 13 years, I have been in the gym with volleyball year after year," she said. "I've always just been passionate about volleyball, even when I was in high school I spent thousands of dollars going to volleyball camps around the nation."

Volleyball has always been the sport for Whitaker. She said she played basketball some in high school, and said that Wrangell really is a basketball town, but volleyball became her real passion. It was high energy and required quick action, she said. The game requires quick bursts of energy instead of basketball, which is more of an endurance game.

As coach of the Lady Wolves, Whitaker said she has gotten to watch several of her girls grow both in the sport and as a person. Alyssa Allen, Whitaker's assistant coach, used to play on the Lady Wolves when she was in high school. The Lady Wolves have hit several high points in their time with Whitaker as their coach. Last year they made it to the state tournament, taking second place. They made it to state again this year, as well. They will be in Anchorage, playing for the state championship, from Nov. 29 to Dec. 1.

"I've had a lot of people say 'oh, why didn't you quit last year when you went out on top, because you're at state?'" Whitaker said. "For the girls to come back prove themselves again, a second year in a row, and be able to go to state is an amazing accomplishment, as well. It'll be a great way to end my current streak at coaching."

Travel and time commitment are major parts of being the volleyball coach. Whitaker said that those were the main reasons why she decided to retire. Her kids are growing up, she said, and she wants to spend more time with her family.

"Some of the most difficult parts of coaching are the required travel around the state of Alaska, especially for coaches who are coaching with young families. It takes you away from your family a lot of the time, so you have to make the sacrifice of spending time with your own family versus helping other kids grow," she said.

Whitaker said that this is planned to only be a temporary retirement, for perhaps four of five years. She said that her plan was to always step away from coaching if it ever came to a point where she was missing more of her own children's events than she missed volleyball games. She wants to take time to watch her two children, nine and seven-years-old, grow up some.

"Every year it's becoming more apparent that I'm missing more and more of the things they have going on in their lives," she said. "I only get a shot at this one time, as a parent."

The best part of being a coach, she said, was getting to see everything click together for her players. Her favorite moments are the ones where her team is able to play a strong game, physically and mentally, and they can all see what they have been training towards. It is good to watch her girls see that hard work pays off, she said.

"Being able to coach somebody through a specific skill and show them over and over again, and finally have it come together in a game and they're like 'Ah, I did it finally!' Those are always awesome moments to be able to show them their potential and let them reach those potentials," she said.

Whitaker added that she plans to stay involved in the volleyball program in some capacity as an official. She said she has enjoyed watching her girls succeed and grow, and that she will want to return to coaching someday. Even though she will not be a coach after this season, however, Whitaker said that she plans to still be there to support the players.

"I still love the sport," she said. "My relationships with the girls don't end when the season ends. I'm a very rounded coach, I'm involved in their lives well after they're off the court and have a very close relationship with a lot of them."