From Hong Kong’s womens national volleyball teams to girls volleyball at this school, SzeNga (Sarah) Tsang finds passion in coaching as her “life-long career.”
Currently, Tsang is an assistant coach for the school’s varsity girls volleyball team and head coach for the novice girls volleyball team. She is also head coach for the Cambridge School’s boys varsity volleyball team and the WAVE volleyball club’s 15-5s girls team.
Tsang played as a middle blocker for the Hong Kong girls national volleyball teams: junior team from 2003 to 2007 and senior team from 2005 to 2019, captaining the team from 2016 onwards. She also worked as a Physical Education teacher from 2012 to 2022 while she was in Hong Kong.
“I moved to the U.S. three years [ago],” Tsang said. “[But] because of the language [barrier], it is difficult for me to become a teacher in the U.S. coaching volleyball [again].”
Starting as a part-time coach, Tsang struggled to adapt due to differences in “culture, policy, rules, regulations and styles” despite playing at the national level in Hong Kong.
When she first started coaching, Tsang “apologized” for when her team lost a game because she did not “understand the rules of the game.”
Regardless, Tsang’s players find trust in her foreign experience and unique aspects to coaching such as “Japanese volleyball techniques,” according to Baylin Tsai (11). Tsang coached Tsai through both private lessons and during the school’s 2023-24 novice team as a libero.
Marina Volsoo (12), middle blocker on girls varsity volleyball and Division I commit playing indoor volleyball at the University of Arizona, comments on Tsang’s abilities as both a player and coach.
“[Coach Sarah] has that elite experience and that international experience,” Volsoo said. “She brings that into specifically middle blocking … She records us [playing, and] specifically for me, about how I’m approaching the ball or how I’m blocking, and she’s helped with breathing techniques.”
For Tsang, Volsoo was “the first one who [trusted] me, an Asian middle coach, and asked for a private [lesson].”
As a coach, Tsang values, “the discipline in the team first.”
“If you build up self-discipline and team discipline, everything [else] will be easy to develop,” Tsang said.
Valuing mentality also characterizes Tsang’s coaching.
“Coach Sarah helped me a lot with getting out of my head when I played,” Tsai said. “… When I play, I get anxious, like, ‘What if I miss this next ball’ or ‘I’ll mess up’ or something. She really helped me be present in the moment and focus on what’s happening right now rather than what might happen in the future.”
Caring for every individual player, Tsang puts effort into making sure her students succeed, according to Volsoo.
“During every game as a middle [blocker], you switch off-and-on [court] with the other middle, so when I come off the court, she always pats the seat next to me and tells me to sit by her while she gives me positive criticism and advice for the next time I go in,” Volsoo said. “That kind of small gesture really makes me feel special because she’s watching how I play, she cares about how I’m feeling and how I’m doing and she cares enough to just give me the best advice possible [for my success].”
Outside of coaching skill and mentality, Tsang’s humorous personality makes her familiar with every player.
“On top of just being very passionate and competitive, she just knows how to have a lot of fun, and she also is really funny,” Volsoo said. “During drills, I’ll go over and talk to her [and she’ll] crack a joke or just say something funny.”
Tsang’s presence on the court creates a positive environment, according to Volsoo and Tsai.
“[Coach Sarah’s] energy and how close she is with each player [creates a positive environment for players],” Tsai said. “I remember she would always joke with each one of us in a teasing, kind of sarcastic, but loving way. I feel like that really broke down the formal dynamic between coach and player and kind of brought us together.”
As a coach, Tsang “enjoys sharing [her] experiences, skills and attitude in volleyball or with [her] players.”
“She also loves to bring food for our team,” Volsoo said. “Before games, she’d sometimes bring soufflés or things from the farmer’s market … You just never have a coach that would just bring that kind of food for you … just, like, to share her favorite things with us.”
As Tsang continues to coach, her personal goals include continuing to “feel ‘hungry’” in her coaching and to “keep passion.” She hopes to one day be a Fédération Internationale de Volleyball (FIVB) instructor and have her own volleyball academy.
Referring to the school’s varsity girls team next year, Tsang wants to make sure “everyone gets a good offer [in] the coming season” and for players to “be passionate and find enjoyment in volleyball.”
