Marta Sniezek is the newest addition to the basketball program at NDB as coach of the Junior Varsity (JV) team. She shares her experiences as a player, coach and new member to the NDB community.
The Catalyst (TC): What is your basketball background? Did you play in high school or college?
Marta Sniezek (MS): I played in both. I played at an all-girls school similar to this one on the East Coast. And then I played in college at a school in the Bay Area. And then I played. I did a grad year at another school and then I played professionally overseas. … I played at Stanford, and then I was injured my last year so I did a fifth year at Notre Dame in Indiana. And then I played in Spain and Germany.
TC: How are you going to implement what you have learned as a player to the way you’re hoping to coach this year’s Junior Varsity?
MS: I think … teaching as much as I can. I think this level is really good for that. You know, a lot of the girls are coming in playing, maybe one or two years or … no years, and I think just trying to teach them as much as I can. And have fun. I think that’s the most important piece is you know, if they have fun, then they’re going to want to learn more and come back for next year.
TC: How did you find out about this coaching position?
MS: I actually work at the University. … My boss, his sister-in-law, coaches varsity volleyball. So [NDB Varsity Volleyball] Coach Jen [Agresti] is my boss’s sister-in-law. So, weird connection. But I mentioned to him I was like, “Hey, you know, I’m thinking about coaching. What do you think, would it be okay?” And he put me in contact with Coach Christina [Okubo]. And so, and funnily enough, Sam [Rossi] and I, we go way back. She was on the staff when I played at Stanford. So when we went to the Final Four in Dallas, Coach Sam was on the staff helping do a lot of the stuff on the back end, the hotels, the food, and yeah, so really cool.
TC: Are you excited to be part of the NDB community?
MS: Yeah, I mean, I love it so far. Everyone’s really open and nice and helpful. And it reminds me a lot of the school that I went to. So it’s comforting.
TC: Is this your first time being a basketball coach?
MS: I’ve coached AAU [Amateur Athletic Union]. I’ve helped out a lot. I’ve obviously ran a lot of camps when I was playing in college and professionally, but it’s my first time coaching in this atmosphere, at a high school level.
TC: What has been your favorite part of Notre Dame so far?
MS: Just being in a really tight-knit community. You can tell everybody cares for each other and just looking out even, you know, from the staff, to every girl that I’ve met. They’re always helping each other and cheering each other on and so I think that that’s a really nice experience.
