11/18/2003

Volleyball coach Tina Schremmer resigned Tuesday after the team finished third in the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference tournament last week.

Schremmer confirmed that she had resigned but said she wanted to speak with Athletic Director Joe Zimmerman before making any public statements.

Team Co-Captain Kaela Cooper said the team learned about Schremmer’s resignation at a meeting Tuesday with the coach and Zimmerman. The team was told that the search for a new coach would begin after Thanksgiving, with the goal of filling the position by January to leave plenty of time for recruiting, Cooper said.

The team was told that the change will allow Friends to focus more on volleyball by allowing the new coach to devote time to one sport, Co-Captain Heidi Ptacek said.

Schremmer also serves as the softball coach.

In the KCAC tournament, the Falcons beat McPherson College in three games but lost to Kansas Wesleyan University in Salina, three games to one. Tabor College won the tournament.

The Falcons also finished third in regular season play.

Team members were pleased with the season, Cooper said.

“By the time the tournament rolled around, we were really hoping to take it all the way,” she said.

After a lackluster season the previous year and with few new people on the team, the team didn’t start the season with high expectations, Cooper said.

“I think we’re all pleasantly surprised at how well we did,” she said.

Ptacek said the entire team was upset about losing in the second round of the tournament because the players had given everything they had against Kansas Wesleyan.

It was even harder to attend the championship game as a spectator, because “we wanted to be there,” she said.

Cooper, a senior setter, was named Player of the Year in the KCAC. Ptacek, a senior libero, was named Defensive Player of the Year. Jessica Cox, a junior middle hitter, was named first team all-conference.