Fox’s hunch launches Hall of Fame career

If Ron “Fox” Clinton hadn’t been so persistent, Rita Schroeder would have never stood at center court in the Southwestern Community College gym Saturday afternoon as the newest inductee into the SWCC Athletic Hall of Fame.

Schroeder, a Treynor native, had played basketball at Southwestern and after graduating with an associates degree in 1982, continued that career on the hardcourt for Simpson College.

After Schroeder graduated from Simpson in 1984, Clinton recruited her to join the SWCC staff as an assistant coach in volleyball, basketball and his softball team. A year later, when Sarah Funderburk resigned as head volleyball coach, Clinton wanted to turn over the volleyball program to Schroeder.

She balked. Multiple times, in fact.

"I loved volleyball in high school," Schroeder said. "But they didn't have volleyball when I was a student at SWCC, and I probably leaned more toward basketball then, because that's where I had the knowledge. So when Fox wanted me to coach volleyball, I said 'no' three times."

Finally, she felt obligated to her coaching mentor and SWCC’s athletic director at the time, and told Clinton that she would do it.

700 victories

A historic career was launched. Schroeder served as head volleyball coach at Southwestern from 1986 through 2009, compiling a record of 705-382. Her teams went to five national championship tournaments — finishing third in 1993 — and finished as regional runner-up six other years.

Her .670 career winning percentage ranks 10th all-time in National Junior College Athletic Association history. Her teams produced 34 Academic All-Americans and nine All-American players. More than 90 of her players received all-region honors.

In November 2014, Schroeder was inducted into the NJCAA Hall of Fame during the Division II volleyball championships in Phoenix, Arizona.

In 2012 the court at Southwestern was named the Rita Schroeder Volleyball Court in her honor. From 2010 to 2012 Schroeder served as an assistant coach, most recently under the direction of her former player, Melissa Blessington, now head coach at Ottawa University in Kansas.

On Saturday, a tribute to Schroeder in the U.S. House of Representatives by Rep. David Young was read by Beth Kulow, SWCC’s dean of student services. Schroeder received a bouquet of flowers from Tracey Evans, SWCC student activities coordinator.

Dr. Barb Crittenden, Southwestern president, presented the Hall of Fame plaque to Schroeder, who was introduced by Bill Krejci, longtime Southwestern baseball coach and athletic director.

Spartan triad

Schroeder joins Clinton and Krejci in the SWCC Hall of Fame, and the longtime volleyball coach, now living in North Carolina, said those two Spartan icons were treasured colleagues during her coaching career.

“We spent a lot of time together,” Schroeder said, “and influenced each other. We took pieces from each other and figured out what we wanted to do. What works in our philosophy in coaching.”

Once she accepted the head coaching position for volleyball in 1986, Schroeder dove head-first into gaining the kind of knowledge base she felt was necessary to successfully do the job.

Among those she spoke with were the outgoing coach, Sarah Funderburk, and her husband Terry Funderburk, who had been head coach at East Union. They were relocating to the St. Louis area.

“I went to clinics, I talked to Stew McDole at Graceland, the Funderburks. I tried to rub shoulders with all of those guys who had experience, because I really wanted to learn first,” Schroeder said.

Ironically, Schroeder would later become a coveted speaker at volleyball coaching clinics throughout the Midwest.

The Spartan volleyball team became consistently successful in a hurry. In attendance Saturday from the first national tournament team in 1988 were Barb Gipe, Cheryl West and Traci (Bradley) Haley.

Among the assistant coaches attending the ceremony were Sandy Thompson, who was also a player on the 1993 national tournament team, as well as Kate Burrell and Sherri Pettit-Cooney.

Players recognized

Four players from Schroeder’s first team — Val Behrens, Sheri McCullough, Kim Tornquist an Kris Williams — were at the ceremony, too. Nearly every phase of Schroeder’s long career at SWCC was represented in the bleachers and received a round of applause when Krejci asked all former players of Schroeder’s to stand and be recognized.

“All the players that are here today, and afar, you were my kids!” Schroeder said, after accepting the Hall of Fame plaque. “I only wanted you to feel like you could do anything in the world. I wanted you to win. Yet, you also have to deal with those other times in your lives. I remember missing out in a big basketball game in high school, heartbroken that we were one game away from state. When you fall, you have to pick yourself back up.”

Schroeder acknowledged the support of the SWCC staff and administration, the volleyball program’s local adoptive parents for her student-athletes, her family and friends. Sometimes, she realized, she stretched the limits of those friendships while immersed in her volleyball seasons.

“I have been blessed to be a part of all of your lives,” Schroeder said, becoming misty-eyed during her acceptance address. “This is a team award. I don’t stand up here by myself having done it myself. My good friends who said I had a volleyball head during the season, and would ask, ‘When’s Rita going to take her head back and be our friend again?’ You make sacrifices, but it has all paid off.”

Schroeder teased the former players in the crowd about an annual dreaded part of preseason practice.

“Girls, we’ll have that timed mile upstairs right after we’re done here,” she said, drawing laughter from her former players.

Reflections

After the ceremony, Schroeder stood quietly in a corner of the gym with a reporter, reflecting on what had just taken place in the gym where she spent thousands of hours coaching matches and practices.

“It’s really all about showing my appreciation to everybody,” she said. “Because one person doesn’t get there. It’s a lot of help from so many people. And to see so many of them here today, it’s awesome. It’s special.”

Individual accolades weren’t what led Schroeder into saying yes Clinton’s request to become head coach three decades ago.

“I never expected this,” Schroeder said. “It wasn’t what I coached for. I wanted to change lives, help kids and make them know they can achieve whatever they want to achieve.”

There was no greater example of that than the 1988 Region XI championship team, which earned a trip to nationals after trailing 2-0 in the regional finals before winning the next three sets for a trip to Miami, Fla.

“I really think that win set the stage for our program’s future,” Schroeder said.