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Coaching Through a Global Pandemic
Coaching through a global pandemic has introduced significant hurdles for the St. Luke’s fall coaches, who have risen to the challenge and seen many positives during the first six weeks of practice.
Several protocols were put in place to enable a safe return to play, and the varsity head coaches agreed that adhering to these protocols has forced them to think outside the box when planning practices. Volleyball head coach Garrett Minyard said: “The first few weeks presented us with the challenge of designing activities that were COVID-protocol compliant. Getting creative with new ideas for drills, while also trying to make serious strides in development, was a pretty awesome challenge.”
Sports made a return to the Hilltop on August 17, after a 158-day hiatus. Both players and coaches are thriving and look forward to competing against other schools. In the meantime, field hockey coach Emily Walsh has implemented some games to help keep her team motivated until that happens: “We have turned some practices into competition days that include relay races, air dribbling contests, and even rock, paper, scissors games. This helps to keep players motivated, enthusiastic, and competitive as we get ready for our first game.”
The cross country team has made a few runs to the gelato shop to help keep motivation levels high, but head coach Corliss Spencer says that training in person is what has really helped her group push each other: “Seeing how fast another runner is going has helped everyone to be better and run faster. We have also added Coach Banks to our staff this year, which has really helped the group. She has a great running background and brings many new workouts to our practices.” Coach Banks is Adrienne Banks, St. Luke’s new Chemistry Teaching Fellow.
Head Football coach Noel Thomas admits that it was a challenge to keep his players motivated while facing the reality of not being able to play 11v11 contests (St. Luke’s will play 7v7 Football this fall to mitigate the risk factors of tackling and line play) but believes his group of players has grown as a result: “Our philosophy is, "One Line, No Gaps, and No Excuses". Everything we do comes back to that - during a normal season or during this pandemic. We believe the challenging times define who we are so it's safe to say we're motivated to live the mission no matter what. Our football family is resilient and battle-tested. COVID-19 has provided an opportunity for physical and emotional growth.”
The Athletic Department announced on Thursday, Sept. 24, that teams will start contests on Saturday, Oct. 3. Boys varsity soccer head coach Ryan Fairhurst said his team has not altered its preparation this year despite the uncertainty around whether they would get to compete against other schools: “We never wrote off the chance that we would play games against some of our rival schools. We prepared the same way as we always have. If we worked hard and respected the protocols in place, we knew we would get the opportunity to play.”
Varsity field hockey will be the first team to take the field against Greens Farms Academy on Oct. 3, with all teams competing against Greenwich Country Day School on Oct. 10. Please note, there are significant limitations on spectators this fall. St. Luke’s is allowing only one spectator per student-athlete participant. An additional note on spectator limitations is that schools have vastly different rules related to visitors on their campus. In some cases, it may be that spectators are not permitted for select road events.
St. Luke’s School is a secular (non-religious), private school in New Canaan, CT for grades 5 through 12 serving over 35 towns in Connecticut and New York. Our exceptional academics and diverse co-educational community foster students’ intellectual and ethical development and prepare them for top colleges. St. Luke’s Center for Leadership builds the commitment to serve and the confidence to lead.
