By Keon Edington and Nicarlyle Hanchard / Jambar Contributors
Horizon League volleyball standout Sam Ott brought her competitive experiences to Youngstown State University as a newly hired graduate assistant coach.
Ott played five seasons with the Wright State University women’s volleyball team. She helped lead the team to four Horizon League Regular Season Championships and three NCAA Division I women’s volleyball tournament appearances.
According to ysusports.com, Ott was named to the All-Horizon League First Team and was a member of the league’s All-Academic and All-Tournament teams.
After graduating from WSU, Ott said she chose coaching as a new start because of a longtime interest.
“I’ve always been around [volleyball]. I’ve always had the idea of wanting to be a coach,” Ott said. “I wanted to try it out and see if that was something I wanted to pursue.”
Travers Green, head coach of WSU volleyball, said Ott showed leadership potential during her time with the Raiders.
“She stepped up a lot more this past season as a leader on the team,” Green said. “That shows more of the initiative and desire to lead and to coach.”
As a Cleveland native, Ott said she chose YSU because of its proximity to home.
“I wanted to be closer to home. I’m a pretty big homebody and Wright State is a little far,” Ott said. “I lived there for five years … It was just a lot.”
YSU women’s volleyball Head Coach Riley Jarrett, said Ott is a great addition to the team.
“For me it was a no-brainer after talking to [Ott] on the phone to add her to our staff and to be a part of our program,” Jarrett said. “She will help bring energy, knowledge, and a winning mindset to YSU volleyball.”
Ott said adjusting to different coaches and a new team was an exciting challenge.
“YSU was a really good opportunity with the new coaching staff and a lot of new changes,” Ott said. “I thought that overall it was a good opportunity for me to get into a program that was learning, growing from the bottom to learning how to grow your way to the top.”
At YSU, Ott is working on obtaining her Master’s in Business Administration. Ott said her main strengths are relatable to players as she recently finished her playing career.
With her transition into coaching, Ott said she is learning her coaching style while working with YSU’s players.
“I realized that as a player, how I liked to be coached versus how other people liked to be coached [is different], “ Ott said. “Some people, you have to be on them 24/7, and some you have to take it back a step.”
It’s not unusual for athletes to transition into coaching. Ott said while being a player or coach can be difficult, everyone should be thankful for the opportunity.
“It’s a privilege to be either a coach or an athlete — to have those interactions day to day,” Ott said.
Green said athletes transitioning to coaches will face the inevitable struggle of differentiating the expectations of a coach and that of players, and Ott is no different.
“I’m sure she’ll go through some of these frustrations at times,” Green said. “All players do when they’re making that transition.”
With one of Green’s former players now coaching for a different team, he said he’s looking forward to facing the Penguins next season.
“You can look at this two ways,” Green said. “You’re glad to see her across the net, because I want to see her, but then I’m not looking forward to seeing her across the net because of what she knows about us and what she might share with the team to try to help beat us.”