Toni Labbe is the new head volleyball coach for the Clark Fork Mountain Cats.

Dressed in a t-shirt and capri’s, she rushes into the teacher’s lounge and drops a heavy, green backpack on the floor. This is after a long day of teaching P.E. to students at Superior Elementary School.

Toni’s life is busy, which is typical of any mother who works and is raising a family. She moved to Superior from Philipsburg last year, where she taught and coached volleyball for five years.

She was the Prospectors head coach for three years, and assistant coach for two. During this period she met her husband, Logan, who is now the Principal of the Superior Elementary School.

They have four children, three are hers from a previous marriage. There’s Trey, who’s in eighth grade, Cassie in sixth, Jaxon in fourth, and Eli, who is 18 months old. Her father-in-law also works at the school, Allan Labbe, who is the high school principal.

Labbe said she would like to get to know the girls who may be interested in playing volleyball next fall. She’s hoping to meet prospective players over the summer when she holds open gym at the school.

Toni is no stranger to hard work when it comes to conditioning for a sport. She played volleyball when she attended high school in Philipsburg. She also played the sport in college while at Montana Tech in Butte.

“I’m not teaching volleyball just for the game, I’m also teaching for life lessons,” she explained. She feels that coaching and teaching go hand-in-hand.

“I feel that every student should participate in extra-curricular activities. With sports, players learn accountability, and responsibility. It teaches students a good work ethic. As part of a team, one of the things you learn is that others need to be able count on you.”

Lexy Fisher, the head coach for Alberton last year, will move into a role as assistant coach.

Between the two of them, they hope to get the girls into good condition by next fall.

“I push my girls hard,” Labbe said about her coaching style.

“I feel it makes the team more confident, and that confidence spills over into other areas of life. Like the classroom, which is the most important thing of all.”

That’s why she’s hoping the girls will show up to open gym this summer. She admits that her workout routine is tough, but she would never ask the girls to do something that she can’t do herself. The routine she has created is something they can do at home, not just at the gym. Toni also has her girls keep a journal of their progress toward reaching their personal goals.

If past records are any indication, she knows what she’s talking about. Her team in Philipsburg went to Divisionals three out of the five years she was head coach, and once while she was assistant coach.

In addition to going to the gym, her plans for this summer include rafting, since this is the first time she’s ever lived near a river. She also plans on working on a garden with her family, and to explore the country in her new backyard.