There's a new man in charge of the Quest University Kermodes women's basketball team but it's a familiar face for the players.
The school announced on June 4 that assistant coach Dany Charlery is in charge of the program, after last year's head coach Mike Woollard departed for a head coaching job at Red Deer College in Alberta.
"I'm excited about this opportunity and it's something I love doing," Charlery said. "I was hoping to get a little more experience as an assistant but the best way to learn is to just throw yourself in there and learn as you go."
Woollard brought Charlery aboard in 2010 after an all-star CIS career with the Brandon University Bobcats in Manitoba. Charlery said he still feels like a player and one of his strengths is being able to relate to the students.
"I think being a player's coach is definitely my strength," he said. "I still practice and scrimmage with the guys and the girls and I feel like I can motivate people. I understand what the players are going through, too, as far as balancing schoolwork and athletics."
Last year was the best season in the history of the program as the Kermodes finished fourth in the Pacwest Conference and qualified for the playoffs for the first time ever. Charlery wants to build on last year's success.
"We're in a stage where we have no choice but to get better as a new program," he said. "It was our best season but there's still a way for us to get way better. Mike did a great job while he was here but the only disappointing thing was that we should have won that first playoff game. Our goal for this year is to make the playoffs and win a game."
Woollard told The Chief he was proud of what the team accomplished while he was the head coach and that Charlery will be an ideal replacement.
"Dany is a great young talent and a very easy going guy and should be a great fit for Quest," he said. "I think that he will definitely grow into the job and expand upon the foundation that was built. I expect Dany to be a very good coach in the years to come. He will now take all the good that he saw during his time as a player and an assistant and assimilate it with his personality, which will only further the growth of Kermodes basketball."
Charlery said the core of the team will be intact and he's looking forward to working again with assistant coach Kim Land. He added that recently graduated Kermodes all-star Nicola Hitchcock has also expressed interest in helping out.
"I don't think much will change," he said. "I don't want to have a team that's rebuilding. I learnt a lot from Mike and I want to carry on where he left off."
For more information on Quest basketball, visit www.questkermodes.ca.
