Dysfunctional program on track with functional coach
New volleyball coach Erich Hinterstocker deserves a little credit. He has had it kind of rough.
A few years back, the young guy from the Midwest went down to the University of Alabama and helped them to their first-ever SEC championship.
After just two years with the Crimson Tide, he was hired as a head coach for a Division I volleyball program. Wait, this doesn’t sound rough at all.
Oh yeah, I forgot, he was hired as the head coach for one of the most dysfunctional Division I volleyball programs in the country, NDSU.
Here is a quick recap of what happened after last volleyball season: Five girls quit the team and the long-time coach was canned.
The coach, Zaundra Bina, was let go after 11 years in which she compiled a 252-88 record. Albeit the last two seasons — the team’s first against Division I competition — NDSU’s record was just 18-51.
To this day, the only explanation we have as to why she was released is that she and the administration had “philosophical differences.” Talk about job security.
The search for the Bina’s replacement was equally dysfunctional.
They came close to hiring a few, but the prospects all seemed to back out at the end.
Some said that among the volleyball coaching community, there was so much respect for Bina’s coaching caliber that her peers were afraid of the pressure that came along with it.
After three months, a guy with some odd German name, Erich Hinterstocker, was hired. He walked into the press conference with a smile on his face, a positive attitude and said he was ready to take over.
Those who had followed the team the past few years came to the consensus that, “this guy has no clue what he is in for.”
The team Hinterstocker inherited is just a handful of players with experience, a couple of transfers and two freshmen.
One would expect the coach to throw this group of girls under the table and devote all his attention to recruiting their replacements, but that is hardly the case.
I simply asked him to tell me who he thought the most important player was for this season, and he told me “the entire senior class.”
Obviously, I was upset because I just wanted a dang quote from him about the team’s star player, but it became clear to me that this is a genuine guy who cares about the girls who have endured a lot of diversity over their careers.
The three months of searching were worth the wait, and the volleyball program will be in good hands for years to come.
Don’t expect the guy to lead them to a Division I Independent championship this year, but he has the direction and attitude the program desperately needs for future success.