photo by: File photo

Free State volleyball coach Nancy Hopkins watches over the Firebirds' summer volleyball camp, Monday, June 23, 2014, at South Middle School.

Free State High’s athletic program will be without one of its most familiar faces next year.

After 18 seasons, FSHS volleyball coach Nancy Hopkins announced she was retiring from coaching on Monday afternoon.

She coached for 42 years in Lawrence, including her time at West Middle School, when she created the junior high volleyball program and helped set up other sports for girls.

But after all of those years, Hopkins decided the time was right to step away from the sport and gain some free time.

“A lot of things have changed over the years, but it’s not just with volleyball,” said Hopkins, who plans to teach for another year or two. “But it’s with the expectations of parents and kids, and just everybody is demanding more, and after all these years, I don’t have more to give because I’ve given so much of myself for 42 years.”

Hopkins, who also ran a high school club volleyball program for 12 years when she was still coaching at West, said she has racked up nearly 800 wins in her career. She led the Firebirds to the state tournament four times, including a second-place finish in 1999.

What will Hopkins miss most about coaching?

“Obviously, the kids,” she said. “That’s the first thing that comes to my head that I’m going to miss, the girls and being a mentor to them, being a second mother to them, being a psychologist to them, being everything that I could be for them.

“Watching them succeed at the next level and watching them just grow and be productive, wonderful women who are strong and successful. I like to feel like I had a huge part in that. I think for a lot of people, I did.”

With Title IX set to go into effect in 1972, Hopkins wanted to give younger girls the opportunities to participate in sports, even though she didn’t have the same chance when she was in high school.

She teamed up with fellow Lawrence junior high physical education teachers Carol Church and Donna Beasley to set up volleyball and track teams for girls at the junior high level in the first year, then basketball the next.

“She’s had a tremendous impact in our community and on the success, not only for Free State’s volleyball program, but even when she was at West Junior High,” Free State athletic director Mike Hill said. “It’s an awful lot of kids, and an awful lot of women who owe their successes to Nancy. She’s been a true pioneer in women’s athletics, and we all owe her a debt of gratitude.”

Hopkins, Free State’s only volleyball coach, led the Firebirds to a 19-19 record this season and a trip to the sub-state championship game.

“I’m going to miss it,” Hopkins said. “I’m going to miss the kids most. But I’m sure that I will find things to occupy my time. It’ll give me a chance to play more golf and do things for me. That’s something that I haven’t done in a long, long time.”

Hill said no timetable has been set to find Hopkins’ replacement.