Jill Matyuch has been coaching softball since 1992; however, until August 25, she had never been the head coach of a Division I program. Filling the void after former coach Roanna Braizer's resignation, Matyuch left a successful Texas program, which during her five-year stint as assistant, won three Big 12 Tournament championships and two regular season championships to take the helm at Ohio. On only her third day in Athens, Matyuch sat down with The Post's Katie Carrera to talk about the new environment, creating a new system and Bobcat Blocks.
The Post: Since you just got here, what do you think of Athens?
Matyuch: I think the people here are incredibly friendly. They've had open arms and have really been helping me hit the ground running. Meeting the players has made Athens more like home, so I was excited to be on campus Tuesday.
The Post: After spending five years in Texas, at a Big 12 school that has a large softball program, how is it different to be here at Ohio and part of the Mid-American Conference?
Matyuch: There are pros to Ohio that you'd never find in Austin, just in terms of the way we roll up our sleeves and go to work everyday. It felt good to work on the dirt ourselves and to take ownership of our own facility, and it's definitely something I appreciate. There's absolutely a blue-collar feel when you start taking ownership in your own program.
The Post: As a new coach, you face not only the pressure of achieving success but also the pressure of creating a new system and having new players fall into it. How are you going to approach that?
Matyuch: I think you have to have buy-in. The student-athletes need to believe in what they're doing and have part of the decision making on the front end. We've talked about the Bobcat Blocks
and we're going to build off of discipline, integrity, respect, teamwork and dirt. We're developing our own foundation and these kids have the chance to be part of something that can continue to grow.
I preach process over outcome -enjoy the journey. Put in the work day in and day out on the little things, and the outcome will come. But if you focus solely on the outcomes, the process is going to be a blur, and I hope that we can enjoy the process and enjoy every day what we're doing. 17
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Katie Carrera
