Fischer brings attitude and identity to ULM’s newest sport
“This is supposed to be funny, you guys.”
David Fischer shouts instructions during a drill he describes as “counterintuitive.” It’s designed to teach his sand volleyball team to read defenses on the fly and get them out of their comfort zone.
The objective is simple enough. If the defender goes one way, then the ball needs to go to that vacated area. It places the opponent in a bind, forcing them to make a split-second decision that hopefully leaves them with a mouthful of sand. When executed properly, the results are hilarious.
It’s not common to find a coach singing the praises of humor during the drills that make up the rigorous and mundane routine of practice. But if David Fischer is anything, it’s certainly not common.
In just over a month on the job, native Californian has put his own stamp on ULM’s newest school-sponsored sport, winning over his players in the process.
“He’s a lot of fun and is super positive,” senior Tetiana Sukach said. “We even have a drill called positive city. He tries to blend the mental aspect with the physical and I really like that.”
Fischer isn’t afraid to jump in the drill and mix it up either. He’s certainly qualified, given his background as a professional volleyball player. Even if he does find the term “professional” used loosely.
“Professional is such a strong word. Volleyball is only a professional sport for about 10 men’s and women’s teams in the U.S.,” Fischer said. “But I can travel at a break-even pace where I win enough gas money to make it to the next event. To me, playing tournaments and winning enough money to travel is a victory.”
So how does a volleyball nomad from Northern California find himself in Northeast Louisiana coaching the game he loves? With a little shared geography and a Facebook message.
The Bench And The Beach:
Fischer is a self-described “volleyball addict” with an insatiable appetite for the sport that began during his days at Santa Barbara High School in California.
“At my high school, there was a good choir and a good volleyball team,” Fischer said. “So I said all right, I’ll do both.”
The game took him to Stanford University in Palo Alto. Fischer jokes that he played the bench at Stanford, taking a back seat on a roster stocked full of future pro’s and Olympians.
“I saw the court for probably four points in league matches in my college career,” Fischer said.
He wasn’t done with volleyball after college either. Thanks to the exploits of some acquaintances from Santa Barbara High, Fischer decided to give sand volleyball a shot.
“I saw that some friends of mine from high school were making money playing beach [volleyball], so I thought I could try that.”
While it’s still volleyball, the intricacies of the sand game are far different from the indoor variety Fischer grew up with. He took to the game just fine, beginning his odyssey of setting and spiking all over the beaches of America.
But you can’t play forever. Luckily for Fischer, old age—at least in terms of athlete years—has coincided with the growth of collegiate sand volleyball. Like many athletes, he found the door to coaching open for him.
Fischer spent time as an assistant at UC-Santa Barbara and the head coach at Oxnard (Calif.) College before discovering the unlikely opening that led him halfway across the country.
Shortly after taking the head volleyball job at ULM, Patrick Hiltz realized he needed someone to take the reigns of the sand team while he focused on recruiting for the indoor squad.
Fischer saw an opportunity. He contacted Hiltz through Facebook, using those Santa Barbara connections one more time. Hiltz spent his high school days at San Marcos High, the crosstown rival of Fischer’s alma mater, Santa Barbara High.
Hiltz was looking for someone who could assist him with the indoor team while also bringing to the table expertise in the sand game. He feels he’s found that with Fischer.
“Sand volleyball is a different sport than indoor,” Hiltz said. “It’s still volleyball, but there are some subtle nuances that need to be addressed to take a good sand volleyball team and make it an elite sand volleyball team. I think David gives us an opportunity to make that jump,” Hiltz said.
The Bag Around the Goldfish:
After jumping in to participate in his own intricately designed drill, Fischer finds himself as the defender with the mouthful of sand.
Undeterred, the coach dusts himself off and rejoins the action. His team has done the same over the course of this first season.
After starting out 1-3, the Warhawks are riding the crest of a three-match winning streak that has them at 4-3 at the season’s midway point. They aren’t elite yet, but it’s fair to say Fischer has them headed in the right direction.
“This group is exactly what I hoped they would be. I knew some already saw themselves as beach players, and some would be new to the sand game and would need to learn a lot in a hurry, Fischer said. “What I’m happy to find out is that this team is full of wicked-smart student-athletes.”
Fischer’s squad is comprised of players from every walk of life imaginable. From Ohio all the way to South America and Europe. Fischer can identify with the diversity. He too is a fish out of water. And loves every minute of it.
“I’m expecting and waiting for an extreme culture shock,” Fischer said. “Coach Hiltz is a Santa Barbara guy, my team is from everywhere in the world. They’re like the plastic bag around the goldfish that keeps me insulated from the aquarium.”
A roster of American and international players coached by a Californian in the heart of the Bible Belt looks on the surface about as counterintuitive as it gets.
But look closer. Below the surface. Beneath the grains of sand that fill the volleyball court. It works. The volleyball nomad from Santa Barbara has found a home in his plastic bag.
