KEN LANE

Twin brothers Chris (left) and Keith Sweat are the new coaches of the Barron Collier volleyball program. Both 2003 graduates of Barron, Keith will head up the varsity program while Chris will take over the junior varsity and freshman squads.

More BCHS Volleyball

• Prep volleyball: Gulf Coast rebounds in fifth set to top Barron in district semifinal
• Prep volleyball: Gulf Coast, Barron advance, will meet in 5A-15 semifinal
• Prep volleyball: District tournament pairings

Tell us about it

• What would you add to this story? Tell us what we missed.
• Do you have photos from this event? Documents we need to see? Share with us.
• Upload photos & videos
• More ways to get your stuff online and in the paper.

STORY TOOLS

• E-mail story
• iPod friendly
• Printer friendly

Share and Enjoy [?]

The Cougars are seeing double.

The Barron Collier volleyball program has a new face. – make that two. And they’re both familiar.

Nick Sweat, a 2003 Barron grad, has been named the new head coach for the lady Cougars and when Athletic Director Jason Mitterwager asked Sweat if he had any ideas for a JV and freshman head coach, Sweat looked no further than his twin brother, Chris.

Sweat is the fourth coach for the Barron program in four years, taking over a one-year stint by Brynn Wilson. Barron finished the 2007 season 19-7, took runner-up in 5A District 15 and lost to St. Thomas Aquinas in the state regional quarterfinals. District champs Fort Myers fell to Aquinas in the regional semi-finals.

The Sweat brothers now walk the same halls as coaches as they walked as students just five years prior. They say it is strange coming back, but admit it feels like home, and running the program makes it even better.

“It’s great coaching together because we know each other’s game,” Nick said. “I don’t have to wonder about what my younger players are being taught. We play the same game and are on the same page. I couldn’t do this without Chris.”

When asked if there were any disadvantages to coaching as brothers, silence was the answer.

The twins, now 23, have been playing beach volleyball for more than 10 years and have taken part in the national tournament in Hermosa Beach, CA each year. They won the championship at age 15, having honed their skills on the full-sized sand volleyball court their parents built in the front yard of their Naples home.

“We got all kinds of attention from that one,” Nick remembered. “When our parents had the house built they specifically had it shifted so that we could fit the court. We were out there every day. It was great.”

The brothers hope to bring that same passion for the game to the girls at Barron.

“We told the girls that the past is the past and this is a new slate – a new era,” Nick said, referring to the summer conditioning that was so hard, the girls thought they had joined the track team. “No one is safe and no spots are guaranteed. We are going to do our best to get them fired-up but the focus will be on the fundamentals.”

Standing just 5 feet 9 inches, the Sweats don’t look like the epitome of a force at the net.

“We have always had to be good on defense because of our size,” Nick explained. That’s why their focus for the girls will be on passing and the defensive fundamentals of the game.

While the final roster is still to be determined, it is expected that four-year starter Christine Stetler will be a leader for the team. They are also expecting big things from sophomore middle hitter Christine Mansour.

“We have some really great young talent,” Chris said recognizing the undefeated freshman team from 2007.

“We need to keep the energy level up,” Chris said. “The girls need to know that they are never out of any match. They know that Fort Myers is the team to beat in the district, but Gulf Coast has a strong team as well. We need to get them mentally prepared, as well as physically.’

Chris, a graduate of FGCU, just completed his first year of teaching social studies as a special education teacher at the juvenile detention center here in Collier County. Chris also hopes to get on-board teaching in Collier County in the near future.