WOLFVILLE, NS - After five years as a player at Cape Breton University, Jalynn Skeir now has her sights set on becoming a women's basketball head coach.
To that end, the Halifax native and Citadel High graduate will spend the 2017-2018 AUS season at Acadia as an apprentice assistant coach with the basketball Axewomen as part of a female university apprentice coach placement through Sport Nova Scotia and Sport Centre Atlantic.
Even before finishing her playing career, Skeir knew she eventually wanted to become a coach.
"I've been involved in coaching younger girls for several years," she says. "I started coaching with Basketball Nova Scotia when I was 17 and in Grade 12. I've coached every summer since.”
In the summer of 2016, she got her first head coaching job with the U-16 girls' provincial team. This past summer, she helped out with the Nova Scotia Canada Games girls' basketball team.
After talking with basketball Axewomen head coach Len Harvey earlier in the summer and hearing about the program through him, Skeir decided to apply. She was one of two people selected for an apprenticeship.
The program, she said, “is for female athletes trying to transition to become a coach.”
Active role
Skeir joined the Axewomen at the start of the pre-season, which included nine games at a trio of tournaments at UNB, Calgary and Queen's. Acadia finished the exhibition schedule with just one loss.
“It definitely hasn't been a sit-down and watch position,” Skeir said. She has assisted at Axewomen practices, and during the tournament at Queen's, with regular assistant Danny DePalma in Ottawa with the Axemen, “I got to be the assistant coach for the whole tournament.”
Skeir identified Acadia faculty member and former Olympic athlete Ann Dodge as her mentor in the apprenticeship program, though most of her practical experience is coming from Harvey, who she is enjoying learning from.
“I've known of Len for a while,” she said. “My first year at CBU, he was an assistant coach with the men's basketball team.”
It's helped that she knows quite a few of the girls on the Acadia team.
"I've always enjoyed Acadia, and my final choice for university came down to here and Cape Breton," she adds.
While she has no regrets with choosing CBU - where she won the conference championship in her final year - she is enjoying being at Acadia and is looking forward to the season.
Similar situation
Her experience in Sydney closely mirrors “a very similar situation” in terms of the Axewomen. Before winning the conference last spring, the Capers lost in the semifinals in 2015 and in the finals in 2016. Acadia lost in the semifinals in 2016 and in the final to CBU last spring.
“I believe this is Acadia's year,” Skeir said, adding, “I don't think I could have picked a better year to be here.”
She is enjoying getting the opportunity to learn about coaching 'on the job'.
“I love still being able to be around basketball. It's been a big part of my life," she says.
“I also like the idea of being able to help people understand the game from a different perspective. I believe that was a skill I had when I was a player – the ability to teach others.”
That's why coaching has been a relatively easy transition, she says.
“It's definitely an advantage to have played the game.”
Skeir will be at Acadia for the whole season.
"I'm looking forward to learning as much as I can,” she said, adding, “Len is a great teacher. He takes every opportunity to teach me.”
In the two months she's been at Acadia, she says, "I've already learned so much about being a better coach.”
Looking ahead
As for what the future might hold for her, she's not sure whether the grant could be renewed.
"If that was a possibility, I'd love to do that,” and spend another basketball season at Acadia.
Eventually, Skeir hopes to coach the provincial girls' U-17 team, which doubles as the Canada Games team in the years in which the Games are scheduled. She missed out on the Games as a player, which would make it doubly special to be able to experience them as a head coach.
Skeir will need to be evaluated before she can be certified as a Level 2 coach, and to coach provincial U-17, she'll need to be certified Level 3.
For the time being, she will bide her time, learn as much as she can, and be part of what she hopes will be a championship season for the basketball Axewomen.
