Matt Sauvage was awarded the WV Coach’s Association Volleyball Coach of the Year in a ceremony in Charleston recently.
Following a season where the Spartan Volleyball team reached the AAA State Championship game and the team won the Sportsmanship Award, Sauvage gets to top it off with a Coach of the Year Award. Coach Sauvage said, “The big thing with this award is that it is all about my girls.” Sauvage gives all the credit to the players.
The ladies finished as State Runner-up and had a 45-14-5 record. During the State Tournament run, they defeated the tournament co-favorite, Spring Valley, in the Semi-finals. They accomplished so much on the court, all the while having a team GPA of 3.95. Sauvage says, “Greenbrier County and Greenbrier East High School could not ask for a better group of girls to represent them. They are an amazing group of student athletes and I am proud to have the opportunity to coach them.”
Matt Sauvage credits Mike King, former GEHS volleyball coach, with getting him started coaching the sport. Sauvage says, “Mike convinced me to play outdoor volleyball and one thing led to another.” Coach Sauvage spent one year under Mike King and then two years under Denny Wood before taking over the reigns as head coach for the past eight years. He is a 1994 graduate of Peterstown High School, where he lettered in football, basketball and baseball. Sauvage continued his education at Concord College where he received his teaching degree. He taught seven years at Ronceverte Elementary and has spent the last eight years at GEHS. He also serves as youth leader at Peterstown UMC and FCA leader at GEHS.
The Spartans begin their season on Aug. 11. With four returning starters, the Spartans expect to make another run at the State Championship this year.