When Emily Berman played volleyball at Towson six years ago, she had no aspirations of becoming a coach.

Then, after a shoulder injury ended her playing career during her sophomore year at UMBC, she need to earn some money, so she took a job coaching club volleyball. The rest just fell in line.

Good players don’t always evolve into good coaches, but Berman seems to be on her way. In her first season as a head coach, she guided the Generals to the Baltimore County championship and to the state Class 3A title game. She plans to stick around a while.

“I really, really like it,” said Berman, who also teaches English at Towson. “I love teaching, but it’s through the extracurricular activities that you really get to know the kids.”

Last fall, Berman assisted long-time head coach and mentor Jayne Lacy and when Lacy retired, Berman took over the team she had led to the state championship in 2001 as an All-Metro power hitter.

“I couldn’t play anymore … but I loved the game so much and it’s done unbelievable things for me. I met some of my best friends. I got to play in college. I got to see places. I just wanted to give that chance and that opportunity back, so I started coaching and Jayne said, ‘Hey can you come help me out for a little bit?’ and here I am.”

Berman seems to have made a smooth transition to coaching despite her youth.

“When I came in, I was worried they wouldn’t take me seriously,” she said. “I’m only 23. I’m young and some of them are 17, so that’s not much of an age difference. I think they appreciate my knowledge and they also appreciate my proximity to their age.”

She can still see things from the players' perspective, so she's developing her own style with that in mind, a style shaped by the coaches she has had throughout her career.

“I’ve had so many coaches, not only in volleyball but in other sports and I know how I reacted to certain methods of coaching and I think more than anything, I know what I don’t want to be like. (As a player) sometimes I felt like I was being personally attacked by coaches and it’s an awful feeling. I played sports to have fun.

“These girls in high school, it means so much to them to beat the Dulaneys, to beat the Catonsvilles where they don’t need to be personally attacked, they need to be encouraged. More than anything I tried to encourage and next year, I know I’ll try to encourage even more.”

That sounds pretty encouraging for the future of the Generals’ program.

-- Katherine Dunn