NEFF, PAYNE NEW COACHES AT NOTRE DAME

Two familiar faces will be filling coaching vacancies at Notre Dame High School next season.

Chris Neff, an assistant basketball coach for three years and the current head baseball coach, will assume the head basketball coaching position.

And former volleyball coach Helen Payne will return to coach Notre Dame's volleyball team. She will replace Janet Buchheit.

Neff will replace Notre Dame athletic director Chris Janet, who stepped down earlier this month to spend more time on the overall athletic program.

"I feel really good about them," Janet said. "Chris is a young and very talented basketball coach. I can tell you that because he was my assistant for two years. We're excited to get Helen back because she knows how important the volleyball program is and she knows how hard we've worked over the years to build it up."

Neff, 26, comes from an extensive basketball background. His father was a coach for 27 years. Chris Neff excelled as a college basketball player at a community college in Kansas and later played for Bethany College, an NAIA school in Bethany, Kan.

Neff was Notre Dame's boys assistant coach for the past two years. Before that, he was a girls assistant for one year.

"This is something I've wanted to do my whole life," Neff said of being a head coach. "I'm following in the footsteps of my father, I guess. I've been around the game all my life."

Neff grew up in Northwest Missouri but said he wants to stay in this area.

"It's a different brand of basketball here in Southeast Missouri," he said. "I've been all over the state and Southeast Missouri is the best. I love the defensive end of the game. I consider myself a defensive-minded coach and defense is very well known in Southeast Missouri. I'm not looking to go back home because I just love basketball here."

Neff said that being with the program for the last two years gives him an advantage in taking over a team that went 13-13 this past season.

"These kids have played for me and they know how I coach," Neff said. "I'm excited. This is a big opportunity for me. I think the future is fairly bright. We've got two sophomores coming back who were part-time starters and we'll have five or six juniors coming back who will have to be big players for us."

Payne, meanwhile, coached from 1992-96 at Notre Dame and elevated the volleyball program to new heights.

The Lady Bulldogs never won a district title under her reign, but she did lead them to the title game on two different occasions. Notre Dame won its first-ever district title the year that Payne moved to Ste. Genevieve.

"We had some real successful teams when I was there," said Payne. "I like working with high school girls. I really liked it before and I'm glad I'm getting the chance to come back.

"I saw them play a couple times last year. I think we should have a real strong team. I think there will be some good seniors and juniors."

Nicole Gonzalez, a four-year volleyball player at Southeast Missouri State University, will be Payne's assistant, replacing Emily Barks.

"As a former college volleyball player, she will add a lot to that program, too," Janet said.

Notre Dame's volleyball team went 14-13-2 last season.