Coaching Experience: I am originally from Long Island, New York and I played volleyball through high school. I then played for four years at Marymount University as the Libero. I began coaching during my late high school years and coach in college; local camps and clinics. I officially began coaching club volleyball 3 years ago at different clubs, all working with the 15 and 16 year old age group. And for the last 2 high school seasons, I have coached the JV team at West Potomac High school.
Coaching Philosophy: My number one goal when coaching is to promote the love of the game. I also think it is extremely important to also encourage young women to push themselves to be the best they can be both on and off of the court. I hope to create an environment in practice that allows girls to try new things and make mistakes, to learn how to push themselves, and how to overcome adversity. I spend a lot of time on fundamental skills and enjoy strong competitive game play as well!
Best Volleyball Moment: As a player, I have many memorable moments and experiences but nothing comes close to the feeling I get when coaching and something just clicks for a player. I have a number of instances in my head where a player repeats back to me something I have said 100 times but, you can tell that, for them, it now finally makes sense. Seeing that change in a player and seeing the growth of all of my players is always a great moment.
My Life in Sports: I have always been a “Tomboy” I started playing baseball around 6 years old, playing on a team with all boys and my love of sports grew from there. I went on to play other sports but, fell in love with volleyball the very first time I played in 7th grade. Sports have been an anchor in my life; a source of stress relief and have helped me become the person that I am today. One of my biggest goals as a coach is to have my players have the experience I had with volleyball, to not only grow as an athlete but also grow as a person.
When I’m not coaching volleyball… I work as a pediatric physical therapist helping kids with developmental disabilities reach their goals. When I am not working or coaching, I enjoy putting together 1,000+ piece puzzles and gardening.
Favorite subject in school: Definitely science. I have always been a big science nerd with my favorite topics being human anatomy and kinesiology.
Favorite Book or Last Book I Read: Favorite: “Nineteen Minutes” by Jodi Picoult. Last Book I Read “Where is the Mango Princess” by Cathy Crimmins
Favorite Movie: Finding Nemo & The Proposal
Favorite Quote: “Just keep swimming” – Dory I like this quote because it is relatable to many scenarios. When it comes to volleyball I find that I repeat “next ball” frequently to myself and to my players for the same reason. There is never a time to just give up and get frustrated to the point of stopping, but sometimes you need to remind yourself it’s okay to make mistakes, I just need to keep trying again and again until I get it right.
Person I’d Like to Have Dinner With: Ellen DeGeneres
Something You Probably Don’t Know About Me: I earned my Doctor of Physical Therapy degree in 2018, so during the day I am Dr. Cassidie Watson PT, DPT.