First-year Roselle Catholic assistant girls volleyball coach Jamie Godfrey is seen returning the ball as a player for Rutgers. (photo courtesy of Rutgers)

Jamie Godfrey, who will coach with her dad, Don Godfrey, at Roselle Catholic this upcoming fall season, has her eye on ball as Rutgers player.

Rutgers Grad Godfrey Helping
Dad With Roselle Cath. Spikers
By JR Parachini
For sidelinechatter.com

Jamie Godfrey wishes she could play another year of volleyball at Rutgers.

That’s how much the present Scarlet Knight coaching staff – including head coach CJ Werneke and assistants Jason Donnelly and Lindsey Lee – meant to her.

“Personally, I had a great time,” said Godfrey, a Rahway resident who graduated from Rutgers this past spring with a bachelor of arts degree in history. “I think that was mostly due to CJ, Jason and Lindsey.”

Werneke became the head coach when Godfrey was a junior.

“They helped turn around a so-so experience with the old staff into a great experience,” Godfrey said.

After a standout four-year career with the women’s volleyball team at Rutgers – which followed a stellar four-year varsity stint at Rahway High School – Godfrey is ready to begin making volleyball a “great experience” for others.

Actually, she has already begun. With her father – Don Godfrey – the boys’ and girls’ volleyball coach at Roselle Catholic, Jamie assisted him this past spring during the boys’ season.

She will also assist him this fall for the girls’ upcoming campaign.

“I’m very excited about it,” Godfrey said. “I know a lot of the players and coached the incoming freshmen in clubs a couple of years ago and at camps at Roselle Catholic. I’m ready to settle down and put a lot into it. I think it will be great.”

Godfrey’s desire is to ultimately teach and coach at the high school level.

“I definitely want to work in the school system and later on become a teacher,” Godfrey said. “I would like to teach in middle school with younger kids and then teach history in high school. I will begin to look into grammar schools in the area.”

From what she observed from high school coach Ray Candiloro at Rahway and Werneke and his staff at Rutgers, Godfrey has always had a passion for wanting to coach someday.

“I’ve always wanted to teach and coach,” Godfrey said. “I’ve had the opportunity to be coached by a lot of great people and they have inspired me to pass on what I know to others. I’ve always had a drive to coach.”

The way Godfrey explained it, coaching volleyball is really not that much different than coaching most other sports.

“As long as the players have the desire to be there that’s what will take them the furthest,” Godfrey said. “As a coach you help teach them the aspects of the game and ask them to try their hardest day in and day out.”

Coaching this past spring was a learning experience for Godfrey herself.

“I really enjoyed it,” Godfrey said. “It was the first time I was coaching with my dad and with the guys.”

“Jamie’s experience will benefit young players and her guidance will help develop them not only as athletes, but as people as well,” Werneke said.

After playing time her freshman season at Rutgers was limited because of a concussion she suffered during a pre-season scrimmage, Godfrey came back and excelled during her sophomore campaign, with wrist surgery that followed.

“Jamie really grew and developed throughout here years at Rutgers,” Werneke said. “She hit some road bumps early in her career, but really came on strong her last two years.”

As a junior in 2008, Godfrey was one of two Scarlet Knights – along with Caitlin Saxton – to compete in all 77 games. She led the team in digs for the second straight year with 222.

Godfrey tallied 942 digs during her four years, placing her seventh on the all-time Rutgers list. Her 427 digs her senior season of 2009 put her second in the single-season Rutgers record book.

Godfrey’s steady play as a senior captain this past season helped lift Rutgers to a 10-19 finish, which was an eight-win improvement from the team’s 2-22 mark in 2008.

“Jamie’s impact to our program started during her junior year and as a senior being named captain she really showed how much she was respected by her teammates,” Werneke said. “Her hard work paid off as she had a great senior year and led our program in digs.

“That was a result of coming full circle as a player and a person and really taking on her role as a leader.”

After excelling as a setter at Rahway, Godfrey (5-2) had to learn the always challenging position of libero at Rutgers.

“It was definitely a learning experience for me the entire time I was at Rutgers,” Godfrey said. “I never played the position before until college and had a lot to catch up on.

“The new coaching staff had a major impact on me playing further in the position. Lindsey helped me a lot with defense and gaining more confidence.”

There’s a certain satisfaction a player receives from competing at the libero position.

“Especially when you have a 6-5 girl going to kill and you dig it and keep it alive for the team,” Godfrey said. “That’s what I like, to help my team out that way.”

After helping lead Rahway to conference and county championships her junior season and to 20-plus win campaigns her junior and senior years, Godfrey had to adjust playing for a Rutgers team that did not win a whole lot of matches. The Scarlet Knights won only five times her freshman year and three times her sophomore campaign.

“We were always the underdog,” Godfrey said. “Going into every game we constantly had to prove ourselves.”

From a won-loss standpoint, Godfrey’s senior year was understandably a bit more enjoyable.

“This past year we played in some big games against bigger schools and that was not the case the year before,” Godfrey said. “It was a great feeling.”

Godfrey pointed to Senior Weekend as her most memorable competition at Rutgers.

“We played UConn and St. John’s and beat St. John’s (3-2) on Senior Night,” Godfrey said. “The whole weekend we played really well and played together as a team.

“Even though we lost to UConn (3-2) to go 1-1 for the weekend, we gave it our all.”

Volleyball is beginning to build in stature locally, with an accomplished player like Godfrey out to continue her contribution.

“In volleyball something happens every play,” Godfrey said. “You may not understand the game completely, but something is always resulting in a point. More fans can catch on quickly. It’s a constant sport.”

NOTES: Godfrey is a 2006 Rahway graduate who helped lead the 2005 team her senior season to a 22-5 record. The Indians reached the Union County Tournament final – falling to Union Catholic 25-22, 25-22 at Westfield – and the Group 2 semifinals – falling to Demarest 25-13, 25-19 at Paramus.

“I loved playing at Rahway. I wouldn’t trade any of my experiences there,” said Godfrey, who was also a basketball and track and field standout for Indian squads.

During her junior season of 2004, Godfrey helped lead the Indians to the UCT championship, with top-seeded Rahway downing third-seeded New Providence 25-21, 25-11 in the final at Roselle Catholic.

That Rahway squad finished 25-2. After opening with a 25-13, 25-20 win over Westfield, the Indians were defeated by Roselle Catholic 15-25, 25-17, 25-21.

Rahway then won 24 straight matches – including a 25-23, 16-25, 25-18 victory over Roselle Catholic the second time the teams played in the regular season – before falling to Pascack Valley 25-20, 20-25, 25-19 in the Group 2 semifinals at Millburn.

“Team-wise, I learned how to work with teammates at Rahway,” Godfrey said. “I started there as a freshman and was given a lot of responsibility to grow. I enjoyed every moment at Rahway.”

Roselle Catholic is scheduled to open at home on Sept. 13 against Westfield at a time to be announced. The Lions are not scheduled to play Rahway in the regular season.

Jamie Godfrey enjoyed her fine women's volleyball career at Rutgers

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