July 22, 2021 at 9:02 a.m.
Wolter seeks to bring familiarity, stability to Hodag volleyball
Wolter seeks to bring familiarity, stability to Hodag volleyball
Dan Wolter, who has been an assistant coach with the program for the last several season, will step into the head coaching role this fall.
Wolter's promotion comes roughly two months after Jim Povolo stepped down after one season at the helm. Stability within the program has been a concern over the past decade. Wolter will be the team's sixth different head coach since the start of the 2013 season, and fourth in the past five years.
"I just thought, being in the program for so long and knowing the girls well, it would be a good opportunity for somebody that they knew and were comfortable with to take the program over and work with them going forward," Wolter told the River News during an open gym session in the Hodag Dome last Friday.
Wolter has helped run the offseason program for the Hodags this summer in lieu of a head coach.
RHS activities director Brian Paulson said between the timing of Povolo's decision, the lack of volleyball coaching experience among new teaching hires within the school district and not much interest from outside the district, they're weren't many options to fill the vacancy.
He also said he encouraged Wolter - who is a network administrator within the district's IT staff - to take on the head coaching role.
"I'm glad that (Wolter) decided in our last conversation that he would step up and coach," Paulson said. "I think a big reason he's doing this is for the kids. He knows the kids very well. He's worked with them in the past. He's a familiar face."
That familiarity is key, especially with the announcement of Wolter's hiring coming almost exactly one month prior to the start of fall volleyball practice Aug. 16.
"It keeps the girls comfortable, having that little bit of a familiar face instead of a fresh face," Wolter said. "They know that they're going to continue working on the stuff that they had last year instead of trying to learn another new system and a new coaching style and things like that. Hopefully it helps with the development going forward for this year."
Wolter faces the task of trying to turn around a program that has struggled mightily since Kathy Wawrzynowicz's retirement following the 2017 season. Rhinelander has not won a Great Northern Conference match since and has going 2-81 overall in that timeframe. The Hodags went 0-10 overall (0-8 Great Northern) in a COVID-condensed 2020 season.
Rhinelander has not had a winning record since 2012 - when the team went 37-7 overall and won its first and only conference championship.
"The goal is always to win games. That's No. 1," Wolter said. "That varsity level, I'm going to take my best six and they're going to be on the court at all times to win. The JV-1 and JV-2 levels, hopefully we can develop skills, develop the experience needed for those girls when they get to the varsity level and start putting together winning seasons."
As for the offseason program, Wolter said the team has been averaging eight-to-10 players during its open gym sessions, and has participated in the Tomahawk League -part of which has been hosted in Rhinelander due to court availability. Additionally, there will be a three-day camp Aug. 3-5 for all players from incoming freshmen on up to hone their skills prior to the start of practice in mid-August.
"We've got a handful of seniors, hopefully they can step up this year and really help the younger girls develop for future years. We've been doing our summer leagues on Monday nights and the open gyms," Wolter said. "Hopefully when we do hit Aug. 16, they're ready to go."
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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