How does former Oregon volleyball standout Liz Brenner spend her days now that her volleyball eligibility is expired?
By sharing her love of the sport, of course.
This fall, Brenner joined former Oregon volleyball assistant coach Gary Meininger as a volunteer coach at Sheldon High School, where Meininger has coached the 6A Irish for the past two years.
“It’s a whole other world being on the other side, getting to coach people and having people look to you and want to get better,” Brenner said.
Sheldon is currently ranked No. 1 in the Southwest Conference and No. 2 in the OSAA, bested only by Brenner’s former high school, Jesuit. During her time playing volleyball at Jesuit, she was part of a team that went undefeated her sophomore year and finished second in state during her junior and senior years. For Brenner, coaching at the high school level has been somewhat of a throwback.
“It’s definitely taking me back to my high school days,” Brenner said. “I had a great high school volleyball experience.”
Brenner adds to the table a great deal of athletic experience but less coaching expertise. To manage the switch from player to coach, Brenner said she has taken some tips from her former coach, Jim Moore, the current Oregon head coach who has coached the Ducks for 11 years.
“I run a lot of the same drills and find myself saying a lot of the same things that he’d be saying to me during practice,” Brenner said.
Being coached by a former D1 star has left some of the Sheldon players a bit star struck. Brenner said many of the girls already knew who she was on her first day as volunteer coach, because they had attended Oregon matches and seen her play. According to Meininger, this recognition has changed the way his players respond to being coached.
“When they hear it from Liz, it comes from a whole different source and they’re impressed with that,” Meininger said in an interview with the Register-Guard.
Although Brenner is no longer a member of the Oregon volleyball team, she continues to play for the Ducks on the women’s basketball team. Still, Oregon volleyball will always have a special pull for her.
“I miss it for sure,” Brenner said. “I’ve watched a lot of their games on the Pac-12 (Networks) and kept up with them and followed.”
Her next chance to watch Oregon play will come this Friday when the Ducks take on Cal. The Irish will travel to Medford, Oregon for their next game this Thursday against No. 19 North Medford.
“Getting to work with kids is a lot of fun—especially in volleyball, something that I love,” Brenner said. “It’s been a great opportunity for me and I’ve had a blast.”
Follow Madison Layton on Twitter @MadisonLayton01