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Indiana Statesman

Indiana State University, Terre Haute, Ind.

| For ISU students, about ISU students, by ISU students

One-on-One

With volleyball coach Traci Dahl

Jonathan Stoner

Issue date: 9/5/08 Section: Sports

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Media Credit: Nathan Boruff

After spending most of her life in sunny California, new head coach Traci Dahl is enjoying first year as the Sycamore volleyball coach. After her playing days at Long Beach State University, Dahl was a teacher and coach at Downey High School in Downey California for seven years.

After the team finished fourth in their conference her first year as coach Dahl went on to coach the team to three straight runner-ups in the conference then finished her seven-year stay at Downey with three straight undefeated seasons with many of her players receiving individual accolades to go with the team's success. Since leaving Downey in 2004 Dahl has been an assistant coach at both Hofstra University, for one year, and Cal State-Fullerton, for three years.

Why Indiana State?

Not only was this a step up from being an assistant coach, but also a place where Dahl "wanted to be."

"On the NCAA Web site they have job openings all the time, and after I studied the program and studied the area, this was the school I really wanted to go to. Not only was the program in a rebuilding phase, which is always attractive for a new coach looking to start somewhere, but the conference that we play in is a very competitive conference.

"Four teams out of the conference went to the NCAA tournament last year, which was the most teams that any conference in the country put in the tournament so that told me that there were a lot of quality teams in this conference."

Taking over the program

"The group of girls that I have playing for me is the nicest group of girls I've ever been around. When I first got here we all sat down as a team and discussed the future of the program, and the girls all agreed that they were tired of losing and ready for a change, so that made it easier for me to establish the things that I thought were necessary to build a successful program.

"At first you could tell that they weren't used to all of the running and conditioning we had them doing, but this group of girls would run through a wall for me if I asked them to, so I couldn't have asked for a better group of girls to begin my time here with."

Plan for a volleyball team

"My perfect volleyball team would just have complete balance all over the court. It starts with the setter because she's like the quarterback of the volleyball team, but balance is more important than anything else.

Continued...

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