MARSHFIELD – The keys to success for Columbus Catholic volleyball coach Kat Egle are simple – have fun, bond as a team and stay positive. That’s it. Nothing more, nothing less.
Not what you might expect from a former volleyball player whose high school in southwestern Minnesota won three consecutive state championships her freshman, sophomore and junior years.
That may come as a shock to Columbus players and fans because it’s not something Egle likes to talk about.
“I don’t like to live in the past. I want to stay humble,” said Egle, who also played one year of college volleyball at UW-Stout.
“My personal goal was that we can be successful while having fun and bonding as a team without yelling and screaming, so I did the opposite of what I was trained to do. It was so near and dear to me, I’m like, ‘There has to be a way to succeed with a positive environment.’ So I kind of took what I didn’t enjoy and tried to turn a program into something I would’ve loved to have in high school – team unity, togetherness, having fun but working hard and trying at the end of the day being the best version of yourself,” Egle told Hub City Times.
Kat’s coaching formula has worked. In 12 seasons at Columbus Catholic, Egle has led the Dons to four Regional finals, four Sectional semifinal appearances, two Sectional championship games and one state tournament berth.
But don’t give her any of the credit.
“Every year it’s gotten better,” said Egle. “The program got strong and now it’s stayed strong, not because of the coaching staff, but because of what the kids do. The kids are positive role models to those younger kids and they teach the younger ones, ‘Hey, this is fun. We’re a team. It’s not all about you. It’s about your team and other people.’ The girls help out with the youth programs and the camps in the spring. That’s where coaching becomes so rewarding, is seeing that throughout all of these years.”
Egle, who coached at the JV level in Spencer for eight years, took over the Columbus volleyball program in 2013.
Her approach got immediate results, with an appearance in the Regional Final, followed by another in 2015.
The Dons then made back-to-back Sectional semifinal appearances in 2016 and 2017, and again in 2019 and 2020.
In 2021, Columbus made it all the way to the Sectional championship match, losing to Laona/Wabeno, 3-1.
Then came 2022, when the Dons went on a magical run, losing just four matches going into a Regional Final with Assumption.
The Royals shocked No.1 Columbus, winning 3-2.
“It turned into a mental game right at the end,” Egle recalled. “As a team and as a coach, we learned a lot that year. You learn more from your losses than your wins.”
The following season, the Dons were once again ranked No. 1 going into postseason competition, after just five losses all year.
“Then we go over to that Sectional Final (at Cashton) and we see a player that intimidated us and it became another mental game. And again, we learned from that,” said Egle.
The returning players had made their minds up in 2024 – no more mental mistakes.
“The seniors had to leave, but the younger girls learned from it,” Egle told us. “They were like, ‘We are not losing on a mental game.’ So, we do mental training, but we really focus more on being even closer as a team. How do we get closer as a team? How do we trust one another more? That was really a big success in our season last year.”
The Dons were just 6-6 after the first week of the 2024 season and 14-13 through the month of September.
Then they rallied, winning seven straight to start October, before losing two in a row, to close out the regular season 21-15 heading into Regional competition.
“It wasn’t our best record last year, but our losses were little blessings in disguise. Through the losses, it humbles you and you learn from it and you become closer when you lose than when you win. And we had injuries throughout the season and we had these ups and downs. But, instead of being upset about them, the girls got together and we grew from those and stayed calm.”
The strategy worked and the Dons earned their first trip to the WIAA State Volleyball Tournament at the Resch Center in Green Bay.
After a state semifinal win over Wausau Newman, which had knocked Columbus out of the postseason in 2013 and 2015-19, the Dons lost the Div. 5 state final to Eau Claire Immanuel Lutheran, 3-1.
Now, Columbus will try to make it back to the Resch Center — this time in Div. 4.
“We are focusing on our defense, and to be the team that never gives up, that keeps popping that ball up” said Egle. “So, we’re working on our verticals, we’re working on never giving up and making good plays and running a super fast offense to keep them guessing. We have great hitters and we can set anyone on the court.”
The Dons have six players returning from last year’s squad. They are Shelby Spata, Alayna Egle, Chayse Blenker, Delia Trader, Sophie Wilczek and Abby Kibbel. Columbus is also getting playing time from two freshmen — Cardyn
Blenker and Kenly Hilgemann.
Izzy Holz is filling the void left by Gracie Wilczek.
The Columbus roster also includes Christina Nemitz, Olivia Becerra and Maddie Bernick.
Egle’s coaching assistants are Gerald Seydel, Sam Moeller and Whitley Behm.
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