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A successful season brought an additional honor to the Powell Panther volleyball team after a state championship berth and 27-8 record, with coach Lesli Spencer being named the 3A West Coach of the …
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A successful season brought an additional honor to the Powell Panther volleyball team after a state championship berth and 27-8 record, with coach Lesli Spencer being named the 3A West Coach of the Year.
The honor is announced to the coaches during the Friday night meeting in between the first and second day of the regional tournament, with Spencer being shocked to have received the award in her third season at the helm.
“It was shocking. My emotions were all over the place,” Spencer said. “It was good to be in a room by those ladies and recognized — it was definitely humbling.”
Powell has shown steady improvement over the past three years under Spencer, improving from 11-21 her first season to 23-11-1 in her second and up to 27-8 this past season.
The coach of the year honor is voted upon by each coach in the conference, and is typically awarded to a rising program or winning program that season, with Spencer saying she would tend to vote for the underdog.
“The coach of the year tends to be a team that’s winning or moving up,” Spencer said. “I was more of an underdog voter. Those years you aren’t successful and you get some girls going in the right direction, that’s a lot harder than winning.”
While tending to side with the underdog, Spencer also acknowledged that it is hard to continue winning at such a high level and compete for state championships year in and year out.
This was Spencer’s first honor since she became coach in 2021.
“Any accolade you can get is absolutely amazing and humbling from your fellow coaches,” she said.
Moving forward Spencer said that the award comes as a bonus for the program, showing the hard work and dedication the players put in throughout the season and offseason.
“It’s not about me at all. It’s a little bonus on the side,” Spencer said. “It means I’m doing something right here. It’s all about the girls and their success.”
That success has brought a bright future for two Panther volleyball players, as two recent athletes Spencer has coached since elementary school in Addy Thorington and Waycee Harvey signed on to continue their athletic careers in college in volleyball and track.
“I have been with Addy and Waycee since elementary school, and seeing their success is so fun,” Spencer said.
