Coaching

 

Mindy Moshier has been coaching women’s volleyball at Mansfield Junior/Senior High School for 21 years, and she organized and coached a travel Junior Olympic volleyball team, the Endless Mountains Volleyball Club. Moshier’s accomplishments as head coach at MHS include advancing to the Elite 8 in the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA) state playoffs 3 times, 3 PIAA Regional Championships, 3 PIAA District IV championships, 5 Northern Tier League Championships, and numerous tournament wins. Moshier led the Mansfield Tigers Varsity Volleyball team to a fifth place finish in the PIAA playoffs this past season.

 

Moshier’s favorite aspect of coaching at MHS is that her teams are “blessed with athletes who are not only very gifted athletically, but also academically.” She loves watching the individual athletes grow and mature during the course of their high school careers and come together as a team during each season to accomplish their goals. The hardest part of coaching for Moshier initially was understanding that not all athletes have the personal drive to push themselves as she does as an athlete. After gaining more coaching experience, she realized that some of the athletes she coaches have multiple interests and volleyball may not be their number one priority. Another obstacle that Moshier must face as a coach is the limited funding allotted to the athletic programs at Mansfield High School, a small, rural school. In order to expose her teams to playing opportunities and first-rate equipment, a substantial amount of fundraising must be completed by each of the players.

 

Another difficulty involved with coaching young girls that Moshier must address is the issue of confidence and self-esteem. She is always very aware of this issue and firmly believes that one cannot coach boys and girls in the same manner. She believes that too many coaches try to emulate famous coaches, such as Bobby Knight, and these coaches feel that they have to instill fear into their players in order to be successful coaches. In her experience, Moshier has found that it is much more important to develop respect between players and coaches rather than fear. While she admits that there are times when a coach may have to yell at their athletes to motivate them, she believes that “embarrassing a player is not how you get the best out of them.” Moshier stated that she does not believe that standing on the sideline and screaming at the child will accomplish anything. Instead, she tries to find teachable moments, focus on the positives, and discuss ways that the athlete can improve. Moshier always tries to “handle the child…just like she would be your own child, and how you would want your child treated.”

 

As a result of her dedication to coaching, Moshier has been forced to make several sacrifices in her personal life. She began coaching when her daughter was only 3 months old, so she has had to sacrifice a lot of family time along the way. The extreme time commitment involved with coaching a competitive varsity team also contributed to her decision not to have additional children. Mindy is actively involved with coaching from August through April, leaving little time for her other personal interests.

 

Mindy Moshier is an excellent role model to her athletes, as she cares more about the well-being of each individual than the outcome on the scoreboard. She motivates each athlete to help them achieve their best while recognizing the need to maintain a respectful relationship with each player. Moshier is not just a coach to her players; she is also a mentor and friend.