Women’s basketball Head Coach Jay Werner has always been into athletics, playing football while at Agoura High School and then Pierce College. Even though he regularly played street basketball, it was not until he attended San Diego State University from 1978 to 1979, when ESPN first started that he was intrigued in college basketball. He remembers being up until “two or three in the morning all the time,” watching the new cable sports channel.
“I just love basketball; it’s a high energy sport,” said Werner. “It’s a cool sport to coach, especially when you have a team who agrees with your philosophy.”
Play together, play hard, play smart: that’s the philosophy Werner instills in his teams. This season, the women’s basketball team started with one sophomore and nine freshmen. “The freshmen played like freshman,” he said, referring to the common injuries in the first games. “But we played hard and got it together.”
Dale Beck, Valley’s sports information director and public address anouncer at home football and basketball games, said he sees “a distinct change” in this team. “I’m now seeing a team effort,” he claimed. “[Coach Werner] is excellent and has got a great work ethic. I’ve seen what he’s done to develop the team this year.”
Werner started coaching at Polytechnic High School and is currently also a full-time physical education teacher there. He has been coaching the boys’ varsity basketball team for 11 years.
Beginning in 2000, he was assistant coach at Valley for four years, becoming the interim men’s head coach in the 2003-04 season. He then returned to school for a master’s degree so that he could teach and coach. In 2009 Valley offered him the head coaching position of the women’s basketball team.
“He is a good coach,” said post-forward Christine Hernandez, a freshman at Valley College majoring in physical therapy. She met Coach Werner when she attended Polytechnic High. “He gets more to the point…I’m happy he’s our coach here.”
Hernandez is testament to the success of Werner’s athletic philosophy, saying, “We’ve had our ups and downs, but it’s a good season. We’ve improved a lot since the beginning. We’ve come together as a team.”







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