CGA basketball coaches ready to adjust
Jaskiewicz, Ivansheck happy for opportunity to stay connected to teams
Nothing has better prepared him to handle life's ups and downs than his athletic experiences, Kevin Jaskiewicz says.
Lessons learned — including a valuable one during the Coast Guard men's basketball team's improbable NEWMAC tournament title run last season — have come in handy for Jaskiewicz while coaching during a pandemic.
"It's a great opportunity to teach guys how to be resilient and have to make the best of the current situation that you have," Jaskiewicz said. "Certainly we talk about our run in the NEWMAC tournament and how we had double-digit deficits in all three games and what we did to try to come back in those situations and what that took and try to use that now in terms of preparation."
Jaskiewicz and Coast Guard women's basketball coach Alex Ivansheck
are dealing with the latest twist and downward turn in a long rollercoaster ride.
The New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference canceled the league's upcoming winter season
due to health and safety concerns involving COVID-19, making the announcement on Monday.
The news was expected news, but still a gut-punch.
"The news was disappointing," Ivansheck said. "There was a little bit of hope just seeing if we could pick up at the end of January or beginning of February and make something work. The writing was definitely on the wall but just disappointing to hear the final word."
So Ivansheck and Jaskiewicz will do what they've done throughout their careers when faced with an obstacle — adjust their game plan and move forward.
They've already mapped out their course of action.
"You always have to prepare for multiple situations," Jaskiewicz said. "You go into a game and try to attack a team one way and if it doesn't work you have to be able to adjust. I think COVID has taught us that we have to be flexible and we have to learn to adjust and change.
"It's really no different than anything that I've done in sports. As a player and a coach, you have to be flexible. You have to learn to adapt to the situation that's at hand. Those skills have certainly helped us at this time."
Both coaches already have made a few changes to their practice routine and approach.
For example, instead of the usual six practices a week, the two teams have been running four since starting in early October.
Without the pressure and time constraint surrounding preparing for a game, more time is being spent on individual development and small group training. The Bears will continue that way until the cadets head home just before Thanksgiving to finish the semester remotely and then begin a long break.
They'll resume practice after returning to campus in January.
"We didn't feel that rush to get everything in by our scrimmages and first game," Ivansheck said. "There's definitely a little bit of a different feel. But we're on the court and practicing and doing blue and white scrimmages and taking things a little bit slower than a traditional season. And the thought is in January when they get back to pick up at a little bit of a faster pace because hopefully we'll be playing some games."
Coast Guard remains committed to providing its winter teams with a meaningful athletic experience, according to athletic director Dan Rose. The Bears will look to continue to play Merchant Marine Academy in several sports as they did in the fall and possibly line up other non-conference foes.
Any game competition is still months away, leaving coaches with the added challenge of keeping things fresh and fun as practices pile up.
To create some competition, Jaskiewicz holds a blue-white scrimmage every Saturday and posts the results on Instagram.
Ivansheck had a Halloween practice with the players dressing up in costumes.
Both coaches are just grateful to be with their respective teams. Jaskiewicz is happy to be working with his players to help them improve. Ivansheck realizes she's better off than some of her coaching friends.
"I've got so many coaching colleagues and friends, they don't even have their teams on campus," Ivansheck said. "When I'm feeling down about playing games, I snap out of it. It's just so nice to be able to be with the team. We're doing practices, team building activities and we see them every day in the office. So I'm just very thankful for that."
What's made a difficult and challenging situation easier for the two coaches is the positive attitude and work ethic of their players.
They're adapting just fine and lifting their coaches' spirits.
"It's just amazing," Ivansheck said. "I was actually talking with my assistant coach and telling her that I feel like they're handling it better than I am or than I would as an athlete. There's something about cadets, they're resilient. They're just happy to be practicing and hopeful that maybe we'll get some games in even if it's not against our NEWMAC members."
Jaskiewicz added: "I have really been impressed with our athletes. If you came to practice, you'd never know that we weren't going to play a game this semester."