Time will tell how much success Redmond High’s new volleyball coach brings on the court. But Kellie Scholl’s players say the veteran coach is already having a positive impact.

“I think it’s exciting to have a coach who wants to make our whole program better,” said senior outside hitter and libero Maddie Vilyeu.

Scholl takes over a Redmond team that didn’t win an Intermountain Conference game in 2014 or 2015. But she brings an impressive résumé from McNary High in Keizer, where her team made the Class 6A playoffs each of her four years. Scholl was also named 2011 Coach of the Year in 6A at Aloha, where she coached for seven years.

“She has experience turning a program around which is great, not just for us, but for the future,” said senior outside hitter Kenzie Jackson.

The Panthers are already showing signs of improvement, starting the season 2-2. They split their first two matches against Hood River Valley and Madras before losing to Hermiston and defeating Pendleton on Sept. 2 in the Mountain View tournament in Bend. Redmond is now ranked No. 19 in Class 5A.

The Redmond team compares favorably to how teams looked when Scholl took over at her previous stops, she said.

“I love these girls,” said Scholl, who also served as first assistant coach for five years at the University of Portland. “They’re smart, they work really hard. They’ve been really coachable and willing to learn the new system.”

Scholl commuted to coach in Keizer in 2015 after she moved to Sisters, where her husband, Curtiss, was named school superintendent. But she said one year of that was enough and applied for the Redmond job when it came open.

“I feel very fortunate to be in the program, because I think this team is ready to do some really great things in the future,” Scholl said.

The players admitted being caught off guard by some of Scholl’s methods, but say they are aware she cares about them and wants them to improve.

“She doesn’t like players having bad attitudes,” said senior OP and setter Kali Davis. “If any of us have a bad attitude, she’ll tell us, and we’ll get the message, because we’ll run.”

The tough love is improving the team’s performance, said senior middle blocker Abby Bergum.

“We just feel more confident in ourselves this year than we have in the past,” she said. “Thanks to Kellie.”

The Panthers are doing a good job of adjusting to the new system, Scholl said. But she is making changes to match the players they have.

“We’re speeding up the system, because we’re obviously smaller than a lot of teams in our league,” Scholl said.

The Panthers face a league that includes defending state champion Summit, as well as state semifinalist Bend. Scholl hasn’t learned all about the IMC teams yet but feels good about Redmond contending.

“I know other teams’ goals are to make it to playoffs,” she said. “I think that’s something they can achieve. But it’s kind of hard to say when you haven’t seen the other teams play.”

But getting there will require all players to work hard, Scholl said.

“We have to have the strong senior leadership,” she said. “They have to step up and keep the ball rolling. But everybody has to be a piece of the puzzle. Hopefully, we’ll continue to improve and keep having fun.”

— Reporter: 541-548-2186, gfolsom@redmondspokesman.com