The Front Row with MARK NELKE May 30, 2010

Colleen Frohlich nearly became a North Idaho College Cardinal more than 20 years ago.

After helping Coeur d'Alene High win its first state volleyball championship in school history in the fall of 1987, Frohlich (then Colleen Jantz) was being heavily recruited by NIC coach Bret Taylor.

However, she also had an offer to play at Montana, as did her Viking teammate, setter Ann Schwenke.

"I seriously though about playing for NIC and playing both basketball and volleyball but when you have an opportunity to play Division I and play close to home, I had to seriously look at that," said Frohlich, who was recently named volleyball coach at NIC.

"I held out for a very long time as far as where I was going to go to school. My heart wanted to go to NIC, but my parents were pushing me in another direction, and ultimately the parents won."

The Montana gig turned out OK. She helped the Griz qualify for the first two NCAA tournaments in the program's history.

After graduation, she coached high school volleyball in Montana, and also was a Grizzly assistant. But when she started a family - she has a boy, 13, and two girls, 9 and 6 - she got out of coaching.

Her last year of high school coaching was in 2000, though she's coached in the Missoula Volleyball Club since then, and also worked as a high school volleyball official.

LAST SUMMER, Frohlich was in Coeur d'Alene watching a basketball tournament one of her daughters was playing in. She walked around the NIC campus and ran into Taylor, and let it be known that if the NIC volleyball job ever came open, she wanted to hear about it.

So this spring, when Chris Kosty resigned to become an assistant coach at Indiana, Frohlich got a call from her sister, Roxanne, and started the ball rolling.

In fact, Frohlich asked if Coeur d'Alene had won a state volleyball title since she graduated. Told the Vikings had not, she replied, "Well, maybe my daughters will get in there and change that."

Ironically, Frohlich will coach against Taylor this fall in the 5A Inland Empire League, as Taylor will be in his second season as coach at Lake City High.

FROHLICH's COACH at Coeur d'Alene High, Kent Scanlon, said she was the most likely member of that championship team to enter the coaching ranks.

"In no particular order - she was highly coachable and always willing to work hard to get better technically," said Scanlon, who coached Lake City through the 2004 season before stepping down. "She had a great work ethic. She was always a fierce competitor but had a very positive demeanor - in other words, she would be smiling while she was beating you."

At Coeur d'Alene, Frohlich was a 6-foot-3 middle blocker, who was a rarity in her day as she was also proficient in the back row. She said Scanlon brought a higher level of volleyball to the program.

"At that point ... we didn't know what we were doing - it was something that you just did for the fall season before basketball started," Frohlich recalled. "I think Kent was aware of the level of play we were at, and knew that he couldn't just come in and force it down our throat. There was a learning process. I remember he came in and said, 'Give me three years,' and sure enough, in our third season we were state champions. So after that, we thought he was pretty much the fortune teller of volleyball."

Frohlich said Scanlon's ability to push players, but also be there to support them, is something she has tried to incorporate into her coaching.

THOUGH SHE technically does not begin her NIC duties until Thursday, Frohlich has already been busy, talking to the returning players, and recruiting some new ones. The previous coaching staff had already signed two players, and she's looking to bring in perhaps three more players.

She said she understands the differences between recruiting to a four-year school and a two-year school.

"At a four-year school you realize you have maybe two years to get them ready," Frohlich said. "At a two-year school you don't. I'm going to be looking at freshmen that can play right away. You're looking for kid that maybe started late and is a good athlete, but overlooked - the kid that is borderline Division I and thought they were going, but at the last minute is kinda scrambling."

The bar has been set pretty high at NIC these days, with the Cardinals having gone to nationals in 2004, '06 and '08.

"You don't want to be the guy that follows the guy, but I am, and hopefully I can ride the good name of the program as well until I can get my own standards going," she said.

Mark Nelke is sports editor of The Press. He can be reached at 664-8176, Ext. 2019, or via e-mail at mnelke@cdapress.com.