Congratulations in order for Trippi-Payne's 400th
High school athletics needs more coaches like Lori Trippi-Payne.
Coaches who always get the best out of their team. Who coach for the right reasons. Who put their heart and soul into helping each of their players be the best they can be.
It's always refreshing to see good things happen to good coaches, and it did last weekend for Trippi-Payne, who won her 400th career volleyball match during Batavia's 10th-place finish at the Maine West tournament.
Not that her players knew the milestone was coming.
"We had no idea at the beginning of the tournament," senior Katie Rueffer said. "It was nice to be a part of it. It was exciting."
True to form, Trippi-Payne seemed happier for her kids than herself.
"It meant a lot this year because the group of girls we have," Trippi-Payne said. "It's a really nice group of girls and they deserved to share this with me. A lot of people didn't think our team was going to do well losing eight seniors. They came in ready to play this season and it shows. I was very excited to be able to get it this year."
Trippi-Payne can't recall which team she defeated for win No. 1, only that it came during a 7-win season in 1987.
She's been at Batavia ever since, now in her 23rd season, and the wins come much more often now than they did back at the start.
"I love working with the kids," Trippi-Payne said. "We have some really dedicated kids here."
Rueffer certainly sees that first hand from Trippi-Payne in practices and games.
"I love her as a coach," Rueffer said. "She knows so much about the game and she cares so much for our team. For everybody in the program, not just on varsity. She has a lot of enthusiasm and really does love the game."
What is it about volleyball that Trippi-Payne loves so much? What keeps her coming back when you see other coaches get out of the profession after a couple seasons?
"I enjoy the strategy of the game and scouting part of the game and figuring things out like that," Trippi-Payne said. "I enjoy watching the kids improve. I enjoy teaching them things about the games. I enjoy having them learn things at a higher level. Learning some things about how to play the game at the highest level possible."
Trippi-Payne's teams have always been known for their defense, their scrappy style of play. Geneva coach KC Johnsen's daughter Coley played at Batavia 10 years ago, so Johnsen has watched Trippi-Payne's teams both as an opposing coach and as a father whose child played for Trippi-Payne.
"The simplest thing I can say is all the while Coley played and all the while I've been coaching at Geneva, it's always a great, exciting match (against Batavia)," KC Johnsen said. "Every year. There's a consistency there that Batavia plays defense. My daughter was a defensive specialist so she really took pride in the defense Batavia played and I think as a team and a program they still do.
"Our hats off to her on that one (400 wins)."
With 400 wins down, how many more are there to come? Here's guessing there's many more milestones for Trippi-Payne and the Batavia program in the years ahead.
How about a nice, even 400 more?
"Well, we'll have to see," Trippi-Payne smiled. "I've been teaching 24 years so I think that would be pretty difficult to be teaching for 47 or 48 years.
"It's been good to get where I've gotten and to be honest with you a lot of it comes with how hard these girls have worked in this program. You don't get to milestones like that without a good solid program and a coaching staff that helps improve our kids and gets them ready for my level. I'm very fortunate to be a part of it. You can go to some other programs where the kids aren't as dedicated, where the coaches aren't as good and you never get to that milestone."
jlemon@dailyherald.com