Miramonte girls volleyball is welcoming new coach, Peter Chao. Chao coached the boys volleyball team at Monte Vista for the past two years until recently joining the Mats family. Last year, Chao’s Monte Vista boys team had a strong season going 23-10 overall. Along with Chao, Nicholas Monroe is coaching the girls junior varsity team and is an assistant coach to the varsity team. “Miramonte has a strong volleyball culture and players who would like to learn and improve their skill sets. It’s close to home and my nieces may attend Miramonte in a couple years,” Chao said.

Chao started coaching 25 years ago. He hasn’t coached girls volleyball in over 10 years and overall has mostly coached boys volleyball. Chao believes that the girls team has a strong foundation. “This is the first time where I am not rebuilding a program. I have strong veteran players who know what it takes to win games,” Chao said. Chao doesn’t only think of volleyball as a game, but also believes the importance of teaching life lessons through the sport.

Many players miss their old coaches but are excited for a fresh start this upcoming season with Chao. “I really like our new coach this season. He has been pushing us hard in practice, but I definitely think that it is paying off and that we are really improving,” junior Audrey French ‘20 said. French has been playing volleyball at Miramonte since her freshman year and it is her first year on varsity.  “Our new coach is great. He’s really harsh, but in the end I know it will benefit our team,”  senior Jen Giron ‘19, a returning varsity member, said. The team is enjoying getting to know the new coach and look forward to improving together.