Andy Stephens will become the head volleyball coach at Kingston Middle and High School.

“It is nice to work with the players going into the high school and having more hands-on coaching with them leading up,” Stephens said. “Since middle school is first, all the incoming freshmen will have the upper hand on the high school kids because they will be playing that style for the last two months.”

Stephens coached at Bainbridge for the last two seasons, leading the Spartans to a 19-17 record and a district appearance. However, Stephens decided to step down from Bainbridge to focus on some family health concerns surrounding him over the last couple of years.

In addition, Stephens coached at North Mason High School and Hawkins Middle School before taking the Bainbridge job. Stephens did not expect to coach this season until his daughters pushed him back into the scene.

“It was my kids who pushed me to apply,” Stephens said. “When my girls found out, they were ready to fill out the application for me.”

Stephens messaged Kingston athletic director Ed Call about the job openings and received the offer shortly after. Now, Stephens is focused on the beginning of the middle school season.

He added he was most excited about “completely building a program and to be more hands-on coaching at the middle school.”

Stephens has not set any goals for the next fall season. Instead, he is going to allow his players to set the goals.

“I will pose the question of what you want to shoot for,” Stephens said. “Do you want a league title, district title or state title? Let’s shoot for the stars and see where things land.”