Webb athletics have had a banner year with graduating athletes moving on to compete at the highest levels of collegiate athletics. Jacob Waas ’10 will be playing football at UC Davis on a full athletic scholarship; Juli Nokleberg ’10 will be fencing at the Air Force Academy after receiving scholarship offers from several top notch programs including Northwestern and Penn State; and Andrew Lantz ’10 will be competing in cross country and track for Davidson, a Division I program.

I think the success of these student athletes shows something I have been saying for years, that if you have the talent and desire to succeed, there is nothing about attending a “small school” that will prevent you from being found. If you have the ability, college coaches will find you; their job depends on it.You will notice that I put the term small school in quotations above. This is because the only way you can define Webb’s athletic program as small is to merely consider us in the narrowest terms of enrollment. There is nothing small about fielding 38 teams in 13 different sports. The Prep League, of which we are a member, could very well be the most competitive sports league in the country for schools with under 500 students. Prep League teams have won multiple CIF championships against schools many times our size. When we enter playoff competitions we are more likely to play large, public school than small, private ones, and that is because we can compete with and beat them. We are able to accomplish this through hiring great coaches and providing great facilities – in this environment we allow our athletes to reach their full potential.

I write all of the above to disabuse anyone of the notion that you are “giving up” anything athletically by choosing to attend a “small” school like Webb. In fact, it is quite the opposite. As our student athletes this year have shown, if you have the ability, you will get your opportunity. But even more important than the successful placement of our best athletes is the fact that many of our athletes go onto play at colleges that fit them both academically and athletically, where they successfully compete on the field and in the classroom.

Graduating with a Webb degree - and all that comes with it - opens doors to wonderful colleges all over the country. Recent Webb graduates are competing at Harvard, Vassar, Cal Tech, Case Western Reserve, Carnegie Mellon, Lake Forest University, Wheaton, Menlo College, Lewis and Clark and The University of Puget Sound among many others. They are playing football, soccer, volleyball, softball, baseball, cross country, track and field, water polo, swimming, and tennis.

While this post has focused on the opportunities available to our most successful student athletes, it is important to note that no matter your skill level or ability, Webb offers an engaging athletic experience consistent with the mission and values of the school. Whether you have never played a sport before or whether you have the talent and ability to play at the next level, there is a place for you in our program to learn, compete, and grow.

GO GAULS!

A common thread running through many of my conversations about athletics at Webb is the idea of building and maintaining success. What are we doing to grow and improve? How do we maintain and build upon those improvements once achieved?

Of course, the answer to these questions often depends on the point of view and assumptions of the person asking the questions. At Webb, we strongly believe that success in the athletic arena can and should encompass ideas far greater than just wins and losses. Likewise, success cannot be defined without truly understanding the context in which it is achieved. Having said that, I think there are three pillars to building and maintaining a successful athletic program that can be agreed upon no matter the perspective.

First, to have a successful athletic program you must have great coaches. Webb has made a concerted effort to hire men and women who are not only technically proficient at the X’s and O’s of their particular sport, but who are also able to effectively communicate their passion to their athletes. In addition, Webb looks for coaches who understand and buy into the culture of The Webb Schools. While it is easy to write these criteria down on paper, Webb has had a tremendous amount of success in recent years finding coaches who fit this profile. Unsurprisingly, this focus in hiring has correlated with some of our most successful seasons as we reached the volleyball playoffs for the first time in school history in 2008 and won the CIF championship in boys’ water polo this past fall season. But, as any athlete knows, a good season encompasses more than just a record. Our student athletes are enjoying their experiences and growing in many ways, learning new skills and often discovering remarkable talents they didn’t realize they had. Just as with a successful teacher, a successful coach brings out the most in his or her athletes in a way that is both challenging and fun.

In addition to hiring great coaches, Webb has supported the building of the athletic program through improvements to facilities and equipment. With the awareness that many factors are out of your control as a player and coach, I am a strong proponent of taking proper care of the things that can be controlled. In recent years, Webb has improved the experience for our student athletes with renovations to Faculty Field, the McCarthy Fitness Center, Les Perry Gymnasium, the Sutro Pool and Chandler Field. In addition to these facility renovations and the regular maintenance of fields and equipment, Webb has a full time athletic trainer to treat and diagnose any injuries that may occur. The combination of these factors affects our teams on many levels. When our coaches and athletes are treated like top-class athletes, they are more likely to perform at their best, which is all that can be asked of them.

Finally, the last piece to the puzzle is the athletes themselves. While we cannot and do not recruit students for athletics, we do work to give student athletes every reason to say yes to our program. While athletics alone is not the reason a student comes to Webb, strong coaching, enthusiastic athletes and great looking facilities are a strong pull. In addition, Webb competes at the highest levels to be found for schools our size in Southern California. Not only do we provide this level of care to our best athletes, Webb prides itself on developing new skills for all levels of experience by providing teams at all levels. As a result, the vast majority of our students leave Webb having discovered and developed athletic skills and interests they were not even aware of when they first enrolled.

Great coaches, well cared for facilities and passionate athletes are essential to achieving success, no matter how you define it. By maintaining the proper focus and appropriately establishing strong programs, we are reaching new levels of success while remaining consistent with our main goal: to develop great men and women of character. 

GO GAULS!

What makes Webb so special? What can a school really do to produce leaders, students of morals and integrity, and young people with strength? Besides outstanding coursework, an excellent advising and residential life program, and a strong ASB, Webb accomplishes these goals through athletics.

I believe that one of the most unique and valuable parts of a Webb education is our requirement for all students to participate in a minimum of one interscholastic sports team per year. For those of you fortunate enough to have had the opportunity to compete on a high school athletic team, you are well aware that there are some things you learn on the athletic field that cannot be taught the same way in the classroom. Something about the adrenaline, the high stakes, your teammates relying on you, and the excitement of competition teaches lessons in leadership, communication, adversity and success in ways that cannot easily be replicated outside of the athletic arena.

However, what maximizes these opportunities on the field? In a word, the coach. Good coaching teaches students skills to be more competitive, keeps the morale high, and makes playing enjoyable. But great coaching does all that and more. Great coaching takes every opportunity through adversity and failure, victory and defeat, to teach integrity, morals, strength, and character.

Over the years I have seen the entire gamut of coaching theories put into practice. I have seen coaches teach players to purposefully take advantage of opportunities when officials were not looking, coaches who encourage their players to cheat in the little things, and coaching that cares about winning at any cost.  At the same time I have known coaches who teach their players how to play with respect: respect for the game, respect for their opponents, and respect for the officials.  I have seen these same coaches be willing to uphold high standards of sportsmanship and discipline even when it puts their own team at a competitive disadvantage. And I have watched their athletes give 100%, play with passion and pride, and love every minute of their experience in both wins and losses.

Some people will ask, is it really possible to have a highly competitive, winning team if winning isn’t the single most important goal? Absolutely. The Positive Coaching Alliance, an organization backed by successful coaches such as Phil Jackson and to whose philosophy Webb ascribes, is an organization that strongly advocates for coaches who are passionate about winning, but are constantly looking beyond the scoreboard and understand that there are successes to be had and lessons to be learned in both victory and defeat. Such coaches are known as “double goal coaches.” These coaches always have athletes striving for achievable goals, playing with sportsmanship, and focusing on aspects of the game that are within their control. In sports, there are always factors you can’t control: bad weather, the quality of your opponent, the judgment of the officials. Double goal coaches teach their players to take their focus off of these uncontrollable aspects and instead concentrate on things like effort, attitude, preparation, and on focus itself. Such coaching creates players who are constantly improving their technique, find fulfillment in the game, and are growing in character. It’s a tall order, but these are the qualities that Webb looks for when hiring coaches, and these are the terms on which they are evaluated.

Hiring coaches with this mindset has in no way hampered our competitive ability. Webb has made a concerted effort not only to hire coaches who have tremendous experience in their respective sports, but who also understand and value our mission and believe that the “student” part of “student athlete” comes first for a reason.  We compete with and defeat schools many times our size, and all of this is done without sacrificing our core values. Instead, we embrace them.

At the end of their high school careers, our athletes will have all experienced success and failure, exhilaration and heartbreak. These are experiences they will encounter again and again throughout their lives in many different contexts. But through the lessons learned on our fields, in our pool, and in our gymnasium, they will have learned to handle these experiences with character and honor, with composure and aplomb. In short, they will have developed the core values of their alma mater as a Webb graduate.

GO GAULS!

2008-2009 was an amazing year for Webb athletics. 11 teams qualified for post-season play, 2 were named league champions, 8 students received all CIF selections and three athletes received league MVP honors in their respective sports. On top of all this, our entire team of coaches worked to instill that sense of leadership and character that are hallmarks of the Webb experience, in the classroom, in the dorms, and on our fields of play.

Building on the momentum from last year, our fall teams have been practicing hard in preparation for the upcoming season. Here's a look at what you can expect in the fall sports season...

Football: In his third year at the helm of the Gauls, head coach Robbie von Pertz is looking to build upon last season’s second place Prep League finish and CIF playoff birth. With 15 seniors returning, including standouts Jacob Wass (DE/TE), Jacob Rode (QB), and Henry Nelson (WR/SS), the team will have as much depth and experience as any team in recent memory, and expects to make a deep run into the post season. Webb opens the season with a 1:30 game at home on Saturday September 5^th against Sierra Canyon of Chatsworth.

WSC Water Polo: The water polo team also has high expectations for the ‘09 season following last year’s run to the quarter finals of the CIF Div VI playoffs. Entering his 6^th year with The Webb Schools, coach Tom MacKinlay and his staff return almost all of their standout players from the ‘08 campaign, including all-CIF performers Chandler Talleur ’10, Chris Sazo, ’10, and Ben Davis ’11. With this core group of players, the Gauls are considered favorites for the Prep League title and should make another deep run in the post season. The water polo team begins their season on September 8^th in the El Dorado Tournament.

WSC Cross Country: A perennial powerhouse in Div V, the Gauls are expecting to make another trip to Fresno this fall with the hope of improving on last year’s 6^th place finish in the state. Brian Caldwell, in his 2^nd year at the head of the cross country program, is looking for continued improvement from returning athletes Andrew Lantz ’10, Raj Anand ’10, Auston Sterling ’10, and Bailey Stockdale ’11 in order to see Webb School of California solidify its status as one of the top small-school cross country programs in the state. The cross country season will begin with a Prep League cluster meet at Pierce College on September 15^th.

Volleyball: After an historic, first-ever playoff appearance culminating in a run to the quarterfinals of the Div III-A playoffs, The Vivian Webb Gauls look to consolidate their gains under second-year coach Jack Coberly. Key returners from last year’s squad include Dana Edwards ’11, Madison Fuelling ’11, and Eshaana Sheth ’10. The lady Gauls open their season at home on September 10^th versus Crean Lutheran South.

VWS Tennis: Third-year coach Robert Robillard expects the Lady Gauls to improve significantly on last season’s 3-12 mark. With eight members of the varsity squad, including standout Laura Santoro ’12, attending tennis camp together this fall, team spirit is at an all-time high heading into the season. Newcomer Laura Yun ’13 is also expected to have a significant impact this season. The team opens the campaign on September 14^th at Chaffey High School.

VWS Cross Country: Head coach Donald Ball, entering his 11^th year at Webb, looks to continue his tradition of seeing significant improvement in his athletes times throughout the season. Kristen Dubble ’10 and Lauren Tafflinger ’11 are set to provide leadership to this young and dedicated squad. The cross country season will begin with a Prep League cluster meet at Pierce College on September 15^th.

Photos and highlights from Gauls athletics can always be found on This Week at Webb and on the individual team pages where you will also find links to the game schedules. Come out to support the Gauls!