Coaching Staff

Stacey Foley: Club Director, President and 12s Head Coach

Biography: Coach Foley was born in Appleton and attended Appleton East High School. She played volleyball under the coaching of Reid Ribble.  After high school she attended Winona State University in Minnesota where she received an education degree.  While attending college she became active in youth volleyball leagues and organizations.  Upon her return to the Fox Valley, she was offered a job as a 4th grade teacher at Edison Elementary.  Her career path then led her to Madison Middle School where she began her coaching at the middle school level.  For several years, she coached 7th and 8th grade volleyball, which is what led to her involvement in Appleton Excel Volleyball Club.  She began the year of the club’s inception coaching the 15-1’s.  After the second year of coaching for Appleton Excel, she was offered the Head Girls’ Varsity Volleyball position at Appleton West High School.  Since then she has been a Terror!  Her position at Appleton West High School led to the opening of Appleton Excel Volleyball Club to include athletes from the west side of Appleton.  She has been a very dedicated and vocal participant since that transition, and she continues to be a coach, while leading the club in its future direction as Board President and Club Director. 

Although it seems as though Coach Foley spends most of her time coaching volleyball, she does enjoy other aspects of her very busy life.  Coach Foley currently teaches 6th grade at Classical School, where she is an active member in several committees and an adviser to Student Council as well as Math Counts.  While not teaching or coaching, she enjoys spending time with her husband, Ryan, and daughter, Ryley.  Together, as a family, they enjoy spending time with their families and friends.  Friends and family are very important to her, and she makes as much time for them as possible.

Coach Foley believes strongly in improving the athletic ability of each athlete she encounters by not only teaching them volleyball skills necessary to be successful, but also life lessons that will help them be successful and independent young adults.  Dedication, pride, and a positive attitude are core elements of her philosophy.  She is continually trying to challenge and push her athletes to become stronger and better people as well as athletes.  Her competitiveness, passion, and dedication are used to convey these ideals to her athletes, and she ultimately hopes that all athletes working with her learn these lessons, become fundamentally strong volleyball players, as well as create memories that they will forever cherish.

Nichole Meidl: 13s Head Coach

Coach Meidl can’t tell you exactly when she developed an interest for volleyball, but she started playing in middle school, and as she learned the game and the different skills needed for this game, she fell in love with it. It became the only sport she focused on in high school. She played all through high school as a defense specialist and was involved with some intramural volleyball at UW-GB.  She has also been trying to stay active and play volleyball in local leagues.  As she has started coaching this year at Appleton West, it has been hard to find the time to play.

Coaching is something Nichole has always wanted to do, but her schedule during college just didn’t allow her to get involved.  In the summer of 2008 she decided it was now time to find that coaching job, and started looking for positions at local schools in the Fox Valley area for any openings for a coach.  She found a posting for a Freshman Girls Volleyball coach at Appleton West, and was very excited to begin her career as a volleyball coach at Appleton West.

With this being her first coaching experience, she had learned a lot, but the one thing she learned was how much she enjoys working with kids and making a difference.  She believes she is not there just to develop their volleyball skills, but to give them life lessons they can take with them as they grow.  She has learned a few life lessons as well during her first season as a coach, and she knows there will be more to come.  The players are not just learning, but she is as well.

Brian Zimmerman: 15-1s Head Coach

Biography: Coach Zimmerman loves coaching volleyball and also coaches boys varsity volleyball at Neenah High School and volunteers with the Badger Region High Performance program as a clinician. Brian is IMPACT Plus and CAP II certified under USA Volleyball's Coaching Accreditation Program (CAP) as well as certified in coaching principles and First Aid through the National Federation of High School Associations (NFHS). He is a member of the Wisconsin Volleyball Coaches Association (WVCA), National Federation of High School Associations (NFHS), and the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA). Brian is also the designer of the Kaepa Appleton Excel Volleyball Club Website.

He leads his players with positive reinforcement. Supported by an advanced knowledge of skills and attention to detail in team strategy, Coach Zimmerman teaches players to learn from their mistakes and adapt their game based on what they see during a match, much like in life. He prides himself on his organizational skills and expects his players to be organized, accountable for their actions, and have a hunger to be better than they are currently.

When he's not coaching, working, or playing volleyball he loves spending time with his family; His wife Chris, step-children; Alyssa, Stephanie, Deryck, Devon and his grandson, Cayden. He has also started taking up golf with his wife and sons.

Mike Smolinski: 16s Head Coach

Tim Weis: 17s Head Coach

Tracey Chosa: 12s Assistant Coach

Jon Zerrien: 15-1s Assistant Coach

Biography:  Jon will be starting his second year with Appleton Excel and is excited to get the season underway. Jon is a graduate of Neenah High School and has played 4 years of boys volleyball for his school, starting on Varsity for the last three years and receiving Fox Valley Association Honorable Mention his senior season. Jon has won several team awards for his leadership, work ethic and attitude voted on by his teammates. He currently attends Fox Valley Technical Institute.

Emily Zalewski: 13s Assistant Coach

Tammy Wittmann: 17s Assistant Coach

Coach Wittmann’s coaching career began in Spring Green, WI, where she coached a junior reserve team. That began a coaching career that has lasted over 24 years and has taken her through Kewaunee, Menasha and Appleton East. Her greatest joy comes from watching players learning a new skill and seeing past players coming back to the sport and passing on their love and knowledge for the game. The sport of volleyball has given Coach Wittmann the opportunity to meet and work with so many fine athletes and their families.

When not on a volleyball court, you might find Coach Wittmann in the stands at volleyball matches cheering on her daughters or on the bleachers rooting for her daughters at softball games. Reading, traveling, reading, enjoying summer, and reading are other interests of Coach Wittmann.

Jasmine Johnson: Club Helper Volunteer

Caitlin Jahnke: Club Helper Volunteer

Biography:  Coming Soon

Betsy Brown: Club Helper Volunteer

Emma Erickson: 14-1s Helper Volunteer

Biography:  Coming Soon

Emily Sokel: Club Helper Volunteer

Biography:  Coming Soon