Brown & Martindale True Players Coaches

Volleyball teammates at North Moore High School and now at Sandhills Community College, Cheyenne Brown and Holly Martindale paired up again to serve as co-coaches for the Highfalls Elementary team that completes its season this week.

Following a season where the two freshmen helped the Lady Flyers post the most wins (24) in the seven years of the volleyball program, Martindale was approached by Highfalls about coaching the team and asked Brown to join her. Flyers' coach Alicia Riggan fully supported the challenging endeavor.

"They've both have been working extremely hard this off season with individual workouts, and open gyms," said Riggan who once attended Highfalls and is also a North Moore graduate. "When they approached me about this opportunity, and wanted to know if they should do it, I was like absolutely. My first coaching experience also came from coaching Middle School.

"I feel if you can break it down for someone beginning to learn the game it not only makes you a better coach, but also a better player."

Brown was a libero at North Moore and a setter for the Flyers. She earned All-Region X second team honors as a Flyer last season. . After college she wants to become a teacher and a coach. Martindale is studying to become a nurse. An outside hitter in high school and college, she was voted the most improved Flyer after the fall season.

Playing different positions gave them an all-around knowledge that was valuable to them as teachers of the game.

"It definitely gives you a better understanding of the game experiencing it as both a player and a coach," Brown says. "They are two totally different points of view. Coaching Highfalls was an amazing opportunity."

With two matches remaining the Eagles boasted a record of 8-2. Martindale feels the biggest help came from what she and Brown learned from coaches like Rodney Garner and Pam Wallace at North Moore and Riggan and the other Sandhills coaches.

"It was phenomenal how hard they worked," Martindale said of the Eagle players.

Riggan got her teaching and coaching start at Prospect Elementary School in Robeson County after playing volleyball at UNC-Pembroke.

"I love hearing their stories and how much their team is growing together," she says, heading into her eighth season as the coach of the Flyers. "I also like when they come back and share coaching experiences such as 'Coach now we know how frustrated you get when we miss our serves in games'. I am so proud of Cheyenne and Holly and what they are doing for our community and sharing their passion for volleyball at Highfalls."

C.Bergmann