Saint Vincent students Matt Klasnic, Matt Minkin, Matt Furrer and Emily Bosche are trying their hand at running a business. It started as an internship opportunity, but now the quartet is all-in on trying to turn an old, struggling cafe in the Latrobe area — they have renamed it Rachelle’s 15650 — into a success.

For the three men, it’s not unlike what they’re experiencing as members of the school’s men’s volleyball team. Under new management, the Bearcats are trying to change their fortunes.

Saint Vincent started its men’s volleyball program in 2020. Of course, that inaugural season was cut short by the covid-19 pandemic. Ditto for the 2021 season. Over two seasons, the team played only 21 matches — not even the equivalent of a full season.

“In some ways, it does,” said Klasnic, a junior libero and Latrobe grad, when asked if it feels like the team is still at Square One. “Having shortened seasons, it makes it difficult to catch any momentum, especially in such a team-oriented game.”

As for the new “manager,” Norwin grad Kate McCauley took over as coach this season, tasked with the job of (finally) getting the program out of first gear.

Being a woman surrounded by male athletes? No big deal for McCauley. She said she grew up with mostly boys in her family, and her resume includes being the head boys volleyball coach at Gateway, manager of football operations at Saint Vincent — a post she still holds — and former SVC men’s volleyball assistant.

“I’m so used to dealing with guys on a regular basis,” said McCauley, who also coached the Greensburg Central Catholic girls, leading them to WPIAL and PIAA titles in 2016. “It took a little bit for (the men) to realize that I knew what I was talking about. I had to explain a little bit more as to why we were doing something and really break it down, which I have seen, in a male counterpart, they don’t ask those questions.

“They’re making me grow as a coach every day. … When they challenge me, I do like it.”

And McCauley isn’t afraid to take a literal hands-on approach. Because of the players’ academic demands, there are times she doesn’t have all 12 of them at practice, so she will jump in and run through drills and intrasquad scrimmages with them — though she confesses she has lost step from her playing days at Saint Vincent (2011-14).

Klasnic said he often gets asked what it is like being coached by a woman. His answer: It’s no different.

“She brings a mentality of just working hard,” he said. “That’s just a testament to herself. She’s worked very hard to get where she’s at and should be proud of where she’s at. And that pride and that work ethic she has just trickles down to the rest of the team.”

The results of that haven’t shown just yet. The Bearcats had dropped all six of their matches heading into Wednesday’s conference opener — SVC is a member of the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference for men’s volleyball — and didn’t win a set.

But no one is discouraged. Klasnic said the team is improving, and, with a more consistent schedule, there is real hope of changing the program’s trajectory soon.

“We’ve adopted that virtue of patience,” he said. “Being patient with the season, being patient with each other, patient with the game flow. We’re close. We’re right on the edge of being able to compete at the highest level in our conference.”

McCauley agreed.

“They’re growing every game. Every set, every match that we play, they have made another milestone,” she said. “Our matches have gotten better. I told them at the beginning of the year, my goal was to compete, and I think we have started to do that.”

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