Photo courtesy of Kevin Yeager, edited by Sarah M. ‘27
Inside the Coaching Philosophy of Coach Walters
By: Juliet F. ‘27
Coaches are an integral part of a private school. They provide guidance, inspiration, motivation, and structure to the lives of many student-athletes. Many athletes feel their coach is one of the most important people in their sports career. In an interview with Coach Walters, we learn about her coaching style, philosophy, and passion for a variety of sports at different levels.
What made you want to coach at Bryn Mawr?
“Well, I feel like coaching has been what I have done for my whole life. From pretty much right out of college, so I love coaching. I actually started here as a coach first and then I was hired as a teacher the following year, but that was my entry in. I immediately loved Bryn Mawr. I felt like the athletes were hardworking, coachable, and they picked things up quickly. They were fun, they were competitive, and so I just never wanted to leave after that first year.”
Which is your favorite season to coach in? Why?
“I've coached some different things but primarily I have coached soccer, basketball, and softball. I coached at the college level for basketball for a number of years so I probably feel the most comfortable with that sport. But I really enjoy the season I am in. So if it’s soccer, I really love the folks I get to know in soccer... and the students that are coming in new to Bryn Mawr. Certainly as a basketball player myself, I have a lot of passion for basketball. But I also love the experience I have in softball in the spring. Again, I get to know a whole group of people, sometimes from the lower school, but then there's always new people in middle school that I get to know. I feel like I get to know people that aren't just in one sport or one strength.
How would you describe your coaching philosophy?
“I feel like I really want to empower each individual student or student-athlete, in whatever sport I am coaching to reach for the best that they can be… and that’s kind of an elusive term, but just to continue to improve throughout the season and to understand what they need to work on or what they need to develop. To see that happen over the course of the season is really cool individually, but I really love seeing it all come together. So you take all of these individuals, and they have their different strengths and you find a way, as a coach, to make it work. Whether you are putting them in different positions, whether you're tasking them with a certain role on the team, whether you are running certain plays, whatever the situation is, I just love that. That is so exciting to me, that creative process of seeing what comes out of bringing people together and developing. Consequently, I love trying to work on team chemistry and seeing how good this team can be. That's kind of the big piece of my philosophy, I just love that process.”
What do you believe is the most important factor in coaching a team?
“I think caring about people and showing that you care. I think everybody is looking for affirmation and that they are valued and an important part of the team. Whether they are on the field or on the court all the time or if they are limited. I think making everybody feel important, valued, and seen as an athlete and as a person is one of the most important things. You learn really great lessons from being on a team. Whether you learn about yourself, you learn about other people, you learn about people similar to you, and about people different to you and I think that is also a really valuable part of being on any team.”
What are some key principles that guide your coaching throughout the season?
“Learning to stretch a little bit, I think that's a big principle, is being coachable. So, trying to emphasize that just because a coach tells you something to work on doesn't mean that that's a bad thing, it's a good thing, it's to try and make you better, so I think that's a big principle. I really try and get teams to buy into hard work, hustle, and effort… effort everyday not just on game days. Effort everyday, because that's the only way you get to the next level. I am a big “team first” [coach], so that's one of my big principles. A team is only as good as each individual, [there] really is a “team first” mentality.”