Joey Vacca is an ASU Cronkite School of Journalism student assigned to cover Valley Christian High School for AZPreps365.com

Lindy Ramsland finds peace in her early mornings. She says it is the only time for her, a time all new mothers treasure.

As the morning goes on she tends to her nearly one-year old baby and begins her day of working from home. She grinds through the day until her husband gets home in the evening. Then it is off to the gym where she drops “Mom” and becomes “Coach Ramsland”, the head coach of the championship hopeful Valley Christian girls’ volleyball team. 

Ramsland gave birth to her first son shortly after the Trojans’ loss in the Conference 3A State Girls Volleyball Championship in November of 2019. She spent the latter half of the season on bedrest but was cleared at 38 weeks to come back and coach for the tournament. Ramsland said the experience was “fun” and  “definitely crazy.” She made light of the stress it brought.

“You’ve got to watch your belly so you don’t get hit by volleyballs,” she joked.

Almost a year has passed since the conclusion of last season. Her son is getting bigger while the Trojans are in a position to make another deep playoff run. Ramsland confessed that splitting time is challenging. “It’s definitely hard, I’m not going to lie,” she said. “Being a mom is the hardest job on Earth, but it’s also the most rewarding job on Earth.”

She credited her baby for making her life easier while she has to divide herself, saying his 12-hour sleep schedule makes him, “very easy”. 

However easy her son may be, Ramsland said it is still difficult not being with him all the time.

“I think the hardest thing for me with splitting my time is honestly just being away from him during his bedtime,” she said. “Not being there to put him down and to say goodnight, that’s definitely been the struggle.”

There to ease the struggle of new motherhood has been Ramsland’s longtime friend and current varsity volleyball assistant Hannah Clay. Clay and Ramsland’s friendship dates back to their middle school days before they went on to play volleyball together at Valley Christian. In their sophomore year of college the two returned to Valley as coaches. After being the head coach for separate teams, this is the first time Ramsland and Clay are coaching the same team together. 

While Ramsland was pregnant during the state tournament, Clay was experiencing the same ordeal giving birth to her first daughter a month after Ramsland. Clay said being pregnant during the tournament, “definitely had its moments.” Clay said she would try to stay calm for the baby, but she did not lose sight of what was at stake. “When it came to playing, I knew I had to be there for the girls,” she said. 

Like Ramsland, Clay’s days start very early. Waking up at 6:00 a.m. to get her baby up at 7:00, Clay cares for her daughter before taking her to her grandmother’s house during practice time. She has seen how different coaching can be while raising a young child. The coaches have had to learn to eliminate the less important conversations after practice so they can return home to their babies. 

“I think the big thing that’s different this year with having a kid is our priorities,” she said.

Clay and Ramsland said the dynamic of being a mother while coaching a championship-caliber volleyball team has provided a new perspective. Clay called the process, “a juggle and a balance."  It made her think of the girls’ parents and ask, “How would we want to coach our kids?” Ramsland said it has all required a great amount of planning.

“I can kind of see where parents come from [now],” Ramsland said. “It’s definitely a different mindset.” 

The difference in mindset has not gone unnoticed. Senior Ella Womack has played three years under Ramsland. 

“Even with pushing us I feel like she’s become, because she’s a mom now, she’s a bit more nurturing,” Womack said. 

Watching both coaches go through their pregnancies while still coaching taught Womack a lot about them as people. She said Ramsland’s competitive nature has been a real example. 

“She has succeeded in [being a coach and a mother] and I feel like that comes from her competitive spirit too,” she said. “So I know since we are all competitive it has been really cool to see that even in life you can set goals and beat them, just like how we do in volleyball.”

Clay and Ramsland have captained the Trojans to an11-2 record and have lost only seven sets so far this season. Despite the challenge of splitting time between mom and coach, a state championship in November would make it all worth it.