Samantha Wentz is a Strength and Conditioning Coach at Canton McKinley High School in Ohio, and a recent graduate of the MSc in Performance Coaching with Setanta College.
Samantha provides insights into her role as an S&C Coach, the unique challenges, and rewards of coaching high school athletes and how to help students connect with the ‘why’ behind their training.
From Athlete to Coach
“When I was in 9th grade, I was first introduced to my high school’s S&C Coach, which is what developed my passion for training,” she explained. “I loved being able to develop my physical strength and fitness in the weight room because I saw a direct correlation in how it helped me increase my speed and strength on the volleyball court, as well as boost my confidence and give me the courage to complete anything I set my mind to.”
That passion led her to Walsh University to study Exercise Science and Psychology, where she also played four years of college volleyball.
Canton McKinley High School
Samantha now works as an S&C Coach at Canton McKinley High School, alongside her former high school mentor Mike Winkler, “the man who introduced me to and inspired me to be a strength and conditioning coach,” she shared. Their main responsibility is to lead the football team’s S&C programme, recovery needs and reduce injuries for the upcoming season.
“We are also in the process of starting up the youth football teams’ training programmes- for the 7th and 8th grade athletes that feed into the high school football team. It is essential for us to train the younger athletes on the foundational and functional movement patterns to better prepare them for their high school training programme,” she shared.
Samantha also helps grow the school’s internship programme by building relationships with local colleges and mentoring aspiring S&C professionals.
Samantha’s schedule varies with the academic calendar. During summer, she leads 4–5 team sessions daily from 8am to 1pm, supporting athletes across a range of sports, from football and volleyball to cheerleading and wrestling.
“We arrive about an hour before each session to set up for the training session, restock protein for the athletes, run through the workout, and clean or organise the weight room,” she explained.
Challenges and Rewards of Coaching High School Athletes
“You can range between having 1–60+ athletes training at the same time. Most of the time, you don’t know what you’ll be working with before starting a session,” she said. “It’s still the coach’s responsibility to train each athlete with the same attention, effort, and patience regardless of the diversity and talent of the group,” she said. “This presents a huge safety concern at times if there is only one coach monitoring many athletes completing different exercises at the same time.”
Despite this, Samantha noted that “some of the challenges that High School Strength Coaches see daily, they have all, in the same manner, taught me lessons or had me adapt my teaching/coaching skills for the betterment of the athletes.”
For Samantha, the rewards far outweigh any challenges. “High school students are eager to learn and do things correctly once they are informed and educated. I enjoy that high schoolers ask questions and want to know the “why” which gives them the autonomy to choose how they will better work towards their goals,” she explained.
She also values the influence her role has beyond sport. “You have so much influence and power to shape their young adult minds to be better leaders, forward thinkers, and driven go-getters, simply through daily interaction at training sessions.
“I think it’s always important to understand why they are training and playing a sport,” she said. “When you can relate to them, you’ll get more out of them during a session.”
Balancing Long-Term Development with Performance Goals
Working with athletes aged 11-18, long-term athlete development is an important part of Samantha’s coaching. “I aim to develop a foundational athletic movement base for each athlete first, then I work towards building their muscular strength and endurance through functional exercises,” she explained.
“Younger athletes are not able to touch a weight of any sort until mastery of body weight movements are conducted. At any point when the weight starts to hinder the movement or function of the exercise, they must return to a lower weight and master the movement before increasing resistance again.”
“If the training is hurting their performance in any capacity, then it is not an efficient or safe programme.”
In an environment focused on performance, Samantha keeps long-term development at the forefront.
“You have to emphasise long-term development because you want them to build a fundamentally sound foundation early on,” she explained. “That’s what allows them to safely progress into more advanced training when they’re older or move on to elite levels.”
It’s not always easy in environments where coaches are focused on game-day outcomes, but Samantha remains grounded in what’s best for the athlete.
“Sometimes it’s hard to keep that in mind when many sport coaches are focused on short-term performance goals, but I always go back to the concept: what is best for the athlete.
Kids learn new skills faster by adapting and creating muscle memory. That’s why long-term development needs to be the focus, whether it’s building strength, speed, agility, or coordination.”
MS in Performance Coaching
Samantha was introduced to Setanta College through its partnership with the National High School Strength Coaches Association (NHSSCA).
“What interested me the most was how flexible this programme was for working individuals, and the professors were very willing to connect with you outside of the online learning platform so that way you could have a personalised learning experience,” she said.
“My number 1 takeaway is to continually DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH. There are so many changing thoughts, ideas, and philosophies in the world of sport science and so many new, improved methods in sports performance training that you may be missing out on if you are not staying up with current literature.”
Looking to the Future
Samantha remains passionate about coaching high school and youth athletes.
“I don’t ever think there will be a day that I won’t train adolescent athletes,” she shared.
At the same time, she’s open to new possibilities, including launching her own sports performance business. “I’ve had adult friends and family express interest in training with me, so who knows—maybe that’s the next step!”
