In seeking a description of Eudora High volleyball coach Jill Stutler, one adjective kept coming up – intense.

In perpetual motion on the sideline, Stutler will jump, pump her arms and, oh yeah, she’ll yell.

“Her face will get bright red,” Eudora senior Erin Kracl said. “She’ll get veins on her neck.”

Those methods must have worked. After reaching the Class 4A state tournament the last two seasons, Stutler, the 2006 All-Area Volleyball Coach of the Year, led Eudora (40-7) to this year’s state title.

“It was just incredible to watch your kids accomplish something that you’ve been trying to tell them for years,” Stutler said. “You’ll never have a feeling like being a state champion.”

Stutler showed her coaching merit as her team advanced to the second day of state play amidst unusual circumstances. Eudora tied Paola and Holton for second place in Pool A after the first day, but the Cardinals’ games-winning-percentage tiebreaker knocked Paola out, and its head-to-head victory knocked Holton out.

On the night before the Saturday final, Stutler gathered her team in her Salina hotel room and told them they needed to take advantage of a rare second chance.

“It was a real inspiring speech,” Kracl said.

Stutler could draw on her own volleyball experience. After graduating from Lawrence High in 1985 and winning a state title during her senior year, she played for four years at Baker University. While working on a master’s degree, she served as the assistant volleyball coach for two years at Baker. In 1991, she became Baker’s head coach and guided the team to nationals. From 1998 to 2000 she coached Perry-Lecompton High and club volleyball.

But this year’s title serves as one of her greatest achievements.

“To win it all is a huge highlight,” Stutler said. “They truly came together as team. It’s just phenomenal.”