BEACHSIDE BEGINNINGS: Volleyball coach Austin Lanteigne ready for return to prep sports

When new Beachside athletic director Jen Harman was on the hunt for a solid volleyball coach, registrar Dan Burkert told her the first call she had to make was to Austin Lanteigne.

Lanteigne is a 12-year coach who worked alongside Burkert for two years at Ponte Vedra as an assistant to former volleyball coach Robin Mignerey, who stepped down at the end of last season.

Lanteigne was with the Sharks when they won their first of three state titles in 2017. He also won a state title as an assistant at Oxford High, in Mississippi, the year before.

After leaving Ponte Vedra, Lanteigne assisted his wife, Kara, at St. Augustine for two years. The pair then had twins and Lanteigne stepped down after the 2020 season.

Lanteigne thought he was done with prep volleyball at that point ... until that phone call from Harman.  

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Knowing he would have the support of Burkert at Beachside and his family’s approval to take some time away made the decision a “no-brainer."

“I’m excited to get back to it,” Lanteigne said.

The Record caught up with Lanteigne to talk volleyball and his plans for Beachside next year.

ML: What do you hope to bring to Beachside?

AL: The balance of living in the moment and playing for the future, I preach that a lot. I’m walking around asking some of these kids what they had for breakfast or what their favorite music is because really I just want to get to know them on a personal level. That’s so much more important than whether they serve out of bounds or double the ball or whatever.

ML: Why didn’t you think you were going to come back to prep volleyball?

AL: It’s a lot in terms of time and commitment. My oldest is six years-old and he plays soccer and basketball. Missing those things is something you have to balance out. The best way to do it is to understand all of the positive impact that you believe you’re making for the athlete that you’re there to support. And to have a wife and family that understand that and buy into that as well.

ML: Talk to me about your connection to volleyball.

AL: I played volleyball in high school. I actually started volleyball to get better at basketball. Then, I realized I was better at volleyball and enjoyed that more.

I played club volleyball at the United States Naval Academy. I had the opportunity to play All-Navy volleyball, All-Navy beach volleyball, which is how I met my wife when I was in Pensacola in flight school. She played volleyball at the University of West Florida.

Without the game of volleyball, I wouldn’t have my wife. I wouldn’t have my kids. I wouldn’t have the wedding part that we had, which was heavily-volleyball themed. My closest families and friends are truly from the sport. So I feel like it’s my responsibility to connect those dots for someone else down the road.

ML: What impact has your time at the Naval Academy had on your coaching?

AL: Sports and the parallel in the military is that you’re a part of something bigger than yourself. You’re not going to be successful if you’re only concerned with yourself.

You’re only going to be successful on a mission by everyone carrying on their own responsibilities and believing in the person to the left and right of you.

In sports, you’re going into battle. You need that person to the right and left of you to believe in you because you’re going to step out of your comfort zone and challenge yourself. Collectively, if everyone does that, you’re going to be successful.

ML: How do you prepare your girls for the formidable competition of St. Johns County?

AL: The volleyball community is small. These girls are smart. They know if they’re playing another school in St. Johns County, they’ve got to be on their A-game because they can be anybody can be anybody on any given night.

We’re playing for the future. We’re not playing to be good enough today. With that mindset, the faster we buy into it, the faster we’re going to be able to compete at a high level, which is equivalent to competing at a St. Johns level.

This article originally appeared on St. Augustine Record: High school volleyball: Longtime coach Austin Lanteigne returns preps