News

May 13, 2022 - Interview story from the Custer County High School newspaper in Miles City MT.

The Cowgirl volleyball team will be introducing a new session to the annual summer camp, according to Head Coach Tonya Chapweske. The Sports Mental Toughness Camp will help teams move on from mistakes and focus on the fun of the sport, according to Chapweske.

The camp will be headed by Brain Filibeck, head volleyball coach and sports mentality specialist, at Beulah High School in Beulah North Dakota. “I know one of the big things we're going to work on is breathing techniques like a focus breath and a refocus breath. We're going to work on positive self talk and then identifying core values,” Filibeck said. There will also be an all-sports session held in the afternoon that any high school female athlete can attend. “I think it's a great benefit for anyone who competes in any type of competition sports wise. It's good for anybody, but definitely from the athletes’ standpoint, that's what this one was geared for. Kids who are competing in band, drama or speech, any type of kid who's competing, it is good to use,” Filibeck said.

Junior Laney Smith said that she is looking forward to the camp. “I think it will be interesting because in sports it is hard if you're making mistakes to get over those mistakes and continue playing the game. [You don’t] realize that everyone's making those mistakes and that you shouldn't be hung up on it, because then it affects overall how you're performing,” Smith said.

The camp will help all athletes develop a more positive attitude, according to Chapweske. “It is the mental side of volleyball and overcoming adversary self talk, like negative self talk versus positive self talk, and then how to bounce back after mistakes,” Chapweske said. Filibeck has been implementing this into his coaching for a few years and has seen some improvement in his players.

“I worked on my master's degree in coaching, and the focus of my thesis was on mental toughness and training. I've learned a ton of stuff, and I've incorporated that into my coaching since then. There's so many valuable little tools that players can put in their pocket to use in this situation. At a game when there's pressure on you, there's points in games that are more pressure than others,” Filibeck said.

Mental toughness is something that anyone can use at any time, according to Filibeck. “The basis of my mental tough training and, why I think it is good [is because], it's not just in sports. We can use this stuff in the classroom, and you can use it throughout your lifetime. It's a good lifelong skill to have,” Filibeck said.

Chapweske said she is eager to hold the camp and have other coaches helping the athletes at the high school. “Sometimes it's nice for athletes or people to hear it from somebody else, and that's what I'm hoping for,” Chapweske said.

Smith said that she’s looking forward to working with other athletes who face the same struggles she does, and that the camp will help resolve those issues. “I think it'd be good to see all the people that struggle with the same, mental weaknesses that I do, and then finding ways to overcome those in game situations,” Smith said. According to Smith, the hardest mistakes to overcome are the smallest ones.

“Simple moments that you mess up and then high pressure moments that you're worried about messing up [are the worst],” Smith said.

The camps will be held June 2, 2022 in the CCDHS gymnasium. Additional information and camp registration forms can be found at milescityschools.org.

March 22, 2022 - Brian will again this spring be speaking at the Vance Peterson Memorial Coaches Clinic in Deadwood, SD on Friday March 25. His sessions are at 2 & 4 pm. The first session will cover 3 areas of his mental toughness training program. The second session will be some of his favorite drills.

Feb. 16, 2022 - Now taking bookings for 2022 Summer Mental Toughness Training Camps. What a great and unique opportunity to teach your team something new. Contact Coach Brian for details.

Feb. 15, 2022 - Brian will be speaking at the North Dakota High School Coaches Association Convention in Mandan, ND on July 28.

Feb. 1, 2022 - Brian will be speaking at the Vance Peterson Memorial Coaches Clinic in Deadwood, SD on March 25.

Dec. 9, 2021 - Wishing everyone a Blessed Christmas season. We look for bigger and brighter opportunities for 2022. Keep checking our website for new events and booking summer camps.