Sami Dietrich sits quietly on the Sioux Park grass waiting for our interview to begin. She is the senior co-captain for the Stevens Raiders soccer team, which will be seeking its third consecutive state title next week in Mitchell. As Dietrich and the Raiders other co-captain, Katie Klapprodt, answer the first few interview questions they say all the right things. Dietrich smiles and she’s polite. Nothing about her appearance through the viewfinder of my camera suggests she is anything but a soft-spoken teenage girl.

Then, like a world-class club D.J. she switches tracks in a split second. Her smile fades and her eyebrows narrow. Dietrich looks right at me and speaks directly.

“Girls sports aren’t just some joke,” she says. “We’re here to prove that. We’re here to win. We play just as hard as the guys.”

Dietrich’s smile returns. “In most sports, we’ve done better than the guys.”

In one lighting quick whip I have finally found a glimpse of what I have been seeking for weeks. I’ve been in search of the answer to one simple question: why are girls’ athletics programs at Stevens High School so good?

Sports observers often claim the Class AA schools of eastern South Dakota have supremacy when it comes to high school sports programs. In football, we know all about the Sioux Falls dominance and the seven straight state championships. In both girls’ and boys’ basketball, with few exceptions, East River teams have dominated for more than three decades.

But then, there are all the other sports: track, cross-country, soccer, tennis, volleyball, golf, gymnastics and softball. Not only do the Lady Raiders hold their own in these sports, they have won more  state titles than any school in South Dakota with 59. If you add in softball and soccer, the Stevens girls have brought home an amazing 67 state championships.

The girls track program at Stevens has won 16 state titles and from 1996-2008 won a national record 13 straight championships. (Photo Kevin Cox/IDS)

“You look at the record boards and our girls have won a lot of state championships,” said Raiders tennis coach Jason Olson. “There are so many sports going on in the fall. Our girls get split up into six different sports and we’re successful in all of them. That is pretty impressive. You look at it, and we have so many good athletes, but I think it is just a thing with our girls, they just buy into it.”

The girls programs at Stevens are showing no signs of slowing down. The soccer team is undefeated this season and is ranked No. 1. Over the last three seasons, they have a record of 60-1-2. If the Raiders win the state title again this year it would make them the first Class AA team to three-peat in South Dakota soccer history.

This fall, the volleyball team is also ranked no. 1 with a record of 9-1. They are seeking their fourth state championship. The tennis team has a record of 25-1 this campaign and is looking for its fifth.

The girls running programs at Stevens continue to impress. Between cross-country and track the Raiders have a combined 32 state championship trophies. In cross-country, sophomore Tamara Gorman is the defending state champion, and is also a two-time national champion in the triathlon. Either Gorman or freshman Emily Person have won every race they’ve run in this season with the exception of one disqualification, in which they finished first and second.

The softball team has won six state titles. They will enter the state tournament this weekend as the team to beat after knocking off the defending champs Central four times this fall.

The Stevens Raiders girls are the city shining bright on top of the hill.

But why? After a couple of weeks of interviews I think I finally began to understand the complex answer to this simple question.

Tradition and Expectations

The Rapid City Stevens middle hitter duo of Margaret McCloud and Kacey Herrmann have both started for the Raiders for four years. (Photo Kevin Cox/IDS)

Kacey Herrmann and Margaret McCloud are the Raiders’ six-foot plus middle hitters on the volleyball team. Both started as freshman, and four years later they are arguably the best middle combination in the state. They bring size, power and experience. Their goal is simple: to win the state title. But when you ask them what it is that propels these expectations, they point to the past.

2008 was the first varsity season for both Herrmann and McCloud, the year after Stevens won its last state title. Herrmann’s sister, Kelly, was one of the top players on the 2007 squad. Kelly now plays volleyball at South Dakota State University, next season Kacey has committed to play for the Jackrabbits as well. She says that watching her sister’s 2007 team had a tremendous impact on her.

“We were always around the older girls. I spent a lot time around my sister, who was a senior,” said Kacey. “Margaret and I were so nervous our freshman year, but we matured because we were around the older girls. When girls come into the program they know they will have to work hard. Our school has a reputation, and I think every freshman that comes into the school knows what is expected.”

It is something athletes will point to as a source of motivation anytime they are a part of a successful program—the tradition and the high expectations. After the first championship—whether it is Sturgis wrestling, Florida football, Post 22 baseball, or the Yankees—the athletes that follow year to year are fully aware of what is expected.

In its short existence, the Lady Raiders soccer team has already made its mark on Stevens athletics. Katie Klapprodt, Stevens star attacker, has spent most of her life around Stevens athletics. Her brother, Kris, is one of the best wrestlers to ever come out of South Dakota. He was a three-time state champion and led the Raiders to the team state title last season. He now wrestles at Iowa. Katie’s mother, Michelle, was an athlete at Stevens and later went on to coach basketball for the Raiders.

Senior Stevens attacker Katie Klapprodt has played on two state championship soccer teams. (Photo Kevin Cox/IDS)

“I think expectations play a huge roll,” said Katie Klapprodt. “I think every year, in every sport, the goal is to win the state championship. I think a lot of it is the coaching staff, and when we bring in new players every year they want to work hard. We want to win, we just want to follow in the footsteps of the teams that came before us.”

Paul Hendry, the Raiders track and field coach, knows about following the footsteps of those who created the tradition of success at Stevens. Hendry has been the coach since 2002, and in 2008 the Lady Raiders won their 13th consecutive state track title, a national record. But Hendry, like Klapprodt, like Herrmann and McCloud, claims that he was just trying to do his best to keep up with those who came before him.

“I was an assistant coach in the program for a few years and I learned from one of the greatest coaches ever, Lemoine Trout,” Hendry said. “The assistant coaches were also some of the best around. My goal was no different back then. I want to be the best that I can be as a coach, and I expect the same of the athlete.”

“At the beginning of the year, we set winning the state championship as one of the goals. We want to finish the year as champions,” Hendry continued. “But the athletes also know that is not the most important thing they are going to take away from the season. It’s the journey, sacrifice, and commitment, goal-setting and forming relationships. A state championship is the icing on the cake.”

Internal Support

The rowdy Raiders crowd is always coming up with some theme in support of their team. (Photo Kevin Cox/IDS)

Jason Olson has been the girls’ and boys’ tennis coach at Stevens for 15 years. The Raiders have won four state titles on the girls’ side and three on the boys’ side. When the Lady Raiders tennis team upset three-time defending champions Sioux Falls O’Gorman on Sept. 10, not only did it halt the Knights winning-streak at 98 games, it also kept the Raiders’ all-time state record for consecutive wins intact with 106, which was achieved in 2006.

I recently asked Olson what it is about the girls at Stevens that has made them so successful. The first thing he pointed to was the internal support among the athletes themselves.

“We have a lot of good athletes, but they’re not all seniors. When there is drama or problems, the girls bond together, it is almost like they have a protective shield over the top of them. They may or may not be best friends, but when they are out there, they’re teammates, and they are loyal to each other.”

All of the female athletes interviewed for this story agreed that the media and fans tend to focus more attention on male sports, especially football, but none of them felt that girls’ sports at Stevens get slighted. Like Olson, Margaret McCloud believes that the support at the school from the administration and the other students is a big reason for the Raiders high level of achievement.

“Our school does a great job of recognizing everyone. When a team does something well, whether it is debate or volleyball, the school will announce it or have an assembly. So everyone at least gets a little bit, and I think that is important.”

“The girls on the soccer team, track team, and many of the other sports are some of my best friends. We are all friends, and all of us are rooting for each other. We all go to each other’s games. It is great knowing that people are going to be there cheering for you. When you look up into the stands and most of the students are there and your friends are there it definitely gives you extra motivation.”

Depth and Talent

Stevens first-year softball coach Eva Burley talks with her team after a game against Sioux Falls Washington earlier this season. (Photo Sam Hurst/IDS)

Stevens High School has had plenty of individual star athletes wear the silver and blue over the years, but Hendry believes for a program to have sustained success year-in and year-out that is takes more than just a few stars. According to Hendry, not only does it take a large number of athletes participating in the different programs, but the athletes also have to be quality in personality and in performance.

“If we’re not winning a state championship in one sport, we’re competitive. We’re lucky to have a large number of girls who are willing to put the work in the offseason.”

Few observers dispute the number of quality athletes moving up to the Rapid City high schools from middle school and youth sports programs. But when I asked Hendry why the Stevens girls programs have been able to accomplish so much in a number of sports, whereas other area sports programs have not achieved the same level, Hendry argument was simple: success breeds success.

“I’m sure you’ve heard this before, but I think it goes in streaks. We’ve had great guys teams as well. The guys streaks have not been as long as the current girls streak is, but I think it’s just a down swing,” said Hendry, who is also the boys’ track coach. They have won 14 state titles. “I think a large part of that too, is that when the younger kids coming up see the success we’ve had here, I think that helps get the younger kids involved. If you’re not doing as well, it is hard to get the younger kids to come out. That hurts your numbers, your depth and your quality.”

The Mental Edge

Last season Sydney Moyle was the surprise winner of the Flight 1 singles state title after upsetting the heavy favorite from Sioux Falls O'Gorman. (Photo Jake Nordbye/IDS)

A program can have great coaches, high expectations, tradition, support, quality athletes and talent, but without the psychological edge, the mental toughness or the confidence, sustained success is simply impossible.

Going back to Sami Dietrich’s comment, it was her answer as to why the girls’ programs were so successful at Stevens that gave us a glimpse of what motivates her. It was a look into her psyche as a female athlete. “Girls sports aren’t just some joke. We’re here to prove that. We’re here to win.”

“I think it is because we have won. I think that’s what motivates the new players each year,” Dietrich said later in the interview. “Each season, we want to continue what the team before us had done. Some people don’t really realize, we have a lot of natural talent, but we have the mindset.”

“We’re not satisfied with just being good,” said Herrmann. “The number one ranking isn’t important to us right now. It only matters where we are at the end of the season. Number six or seven wants to knock us off. You have to earn it at the end. Everyone else wants it just as bad as we do. We’re confident, but we’re not overconfident.”

The best sports programs in the area have always had the mental edge. The 1993 Post 22 team that won the national championship often times had its opponents beaten by the time they finished pre-game. I remember several times the warm-up for the game was executed so flawlessly that the crowd would give them a standing ovation when it finished. That team had all the other components successful clubs need. Plenty of talent, support, high expectations, great coaching, but what set them apart was the mental game.

It works the other way too. I was recently at a football game between a Rapid City team and a Sioux Falls team. When the two sets of captains walked out to midfield, one group held hands and exuded confidence. They looked right into the eyes of their opponent. Call it confidence, call it swagger, it is the intangible psychological part of the game that isn’t separate but instead is intrinsically linked to success in athletics.

The other team walked out to the center of the field with little confidence, emotion, or swagger. They had already accepted of their role as inferiors. When the players from the other side looked in their eyes. They looked down or looked away. They were beaten and the game had even started.

Paul Hendry knows all about the psychological factor. You don’t win 13 straight state championships without it.

“I think physically we’re pretty similar to a lot of the girls in the state. Mentally, I think we have an edge because of the tradition we have here at the school. The girls believe they are going to win. There is an expectation there and even though we don’t always win, the girls who compete in our programs have only the highest expectations for themselves.”

This weekend, the Raiders softball team will look to steal the state title away from cross-town rivals Central. Next week, the soccer team seeks a third straight title and a bit of history. Down a key player, the tennis team will try to knock off the three-time defending champs in Sioux Falls O’Gorman. On Oct. 22, Tamara Gorman will attempt to defend her state championship at the state cross-country meet. And on Nov. 17-19, the Raiders volleyball team will attempt to bring another state title back to Rapid City.