Volleyball Coach of the Year: James Wood's Jaime Terenzi

Jaime Terenzi is The Winchester Star Volleyball Coach of the Year after a spectacular debut season with the Colonels.

Terenzi led the Colonels to a 23-5 record — their most wins since also winning 23 matches in 2016 — after the team went 16-8 last season. The Colonels went 3-0 against Millbrook to snap an 11-match losing streak against the Pioneers. James Wood had not beaten Millbrook since 2014.

James Wood went a perfect 17-0 in Class 4 Northwestern District play. The Colonels went 14-0 in the regular season to win their first Northwestern District championship since 2014. James Wood then won the district tournament for its first postseason tournament championship since taking the Conference 21 West tournament in 2016.

In the Region 4C semifinals, James Wood defeated Heritage 3-2 to clinch its first state tournament berth since 2016. The Colonels lost to eventual state champion Loudoun County 3-0 in the Region 4C championship, then saw its season end with a 3-2 loss to Blacksburg in the Class 4 state quarterfinals.

Q. How did this season go based on your preseason expectations?

Terenzi: It went amazingly. The season absolutely exceeded my expectations, but I did have high expectations for this group. I felt we could challenge for a district title and a state tournament berth. I knew we had some good returners and I was excited about the new players that we had.

Q. What qualities stand out about your team this season?

Terenzi: They were a team in every sense of the word. I think that played the biggest part in their success this year. In practice, off the court, they were constantly unified, which is an amazing thing. There’s a bond that these players have that I really think brought them far.

Q. Was there any tournament or match that was significantly important in the team’s development before the postseason?

Terenzi: The competition that we had was intermittent, but the tougher teams were definitely needed. Playing Westfield [a Class 6 state quarterfinalist last year] and Musselman [six West Virginia Class AAA state titles since 2008] in the beginning of the season helped us find our feet a little bit. (James Wood lost to Musselman 2-1 and Westfield 2-0 in the Loudoun Valley Tournament on Sept. 7.) Going up against a team like Westfield, which has D1 player after D1 player after D1 player, [our team was] kind of like ‘deer in the headlights’ at first.

But I told them they have nothing to lose, and I moved them around and changed the lineup. I told my blockers, ‘I want you on their best hitters. You’re going to block them wherever they are.’ They were good with that. Sometimes when you change things it can throw a wrench in the dynamic, but that didn’t happen.

The biggest thing I think that held this team together was any changes that we needed to make, we dealt with. They didn’t let changes shake them. Senior night [a 3-0 win vs. Millbrook] when we missing [middle blocker] Kate Costin, Alyssah McGuire played middle. And Kendall Funk, who is primarily a defensive player in the back row, played right side in the front for us. They pulled it together and all did tremendous.

Q. What was the most difficult moment?

Terenzi: Playing Loudoun County [in the Region 4C semifinals] and overcoming the idea of playing Loudoun County. (The Raiders have won eight straight state championships.) Loudoun County is legendary, so being able to go there and still have that belief that our team can win was tough. At first, our team was kind of shaky, but we still had our moments when we played really, really well.

Q. What was the most memorable moment?

Terenzi: I think this team is going to remember that [second] Millbrook game. (The Colonels won 3-0 on Oct. 24 to complete a 14-0 district regular season.) I know that clinched the district, but that wasn’t even the most important part. The players were focused on playing well for the seniors and it solidified their season as a team. It wasn’t just a fluke that we had beaten Millbrook before. They showed they could do it again.

Q. You lose three seniors from the 12 players on this year’s team and return three all-region players in Kristyna Van Sickler, Grace Frigaard and Lainie Putt. Expectations for next season?

Terenzi: I think we’re sitting pretty for next year. We bring back a great setter in Katie Matthews. We bring back a really heavy offense with Kristyna, Grace and Lainie. Rebecca Lever is coming back as libero and did a great job. She was a setter before and did a really good job making that transition.

— Complied by Robert Niedzwiecki