HARDIN — The Hardin High School gym was renamed in honor of coach Laura Sundheim on Thursday night during a volleyball match between the Bulldogs and Billings Central.
“We have a volleyball match. That’s the most important thing tonight," said Sundheim.
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The 66-year-old Sundheim has worked as a counselor and coach for the last 45 years, and was inducted into the National High School Coaches Hall of Fame.
In all, Sundheim posted a record of 515-168 (a .754 winning percentage) at Hardin between 1985 and 2006. The Bulldogs won three straight volleyball titles from 1993-95, then tacked on two more in 2000 and 2002.
In one span between the late 1990s and early 2000s, Sundheim's Bulldogs never lost an Eastern A match, going 48-0.
“I just think people are better just by knowing her," said Anita Foster, the head coach for the Central volleyball team and a former player at Hardin under Sundheim.
Both Foster and Kelsey Torske, now the head volleylball coach at Hardin, are former players of Sundheim's.
“She has passed on that love of the game and the love of kids," said Linda McClanahan, who worked alongside Sundheim for most of her career before retiring. "I shouldn’t be emotional. She’s just a great person. She deserves this.”
Sundheim noted that she is not ready to retire, saying she enjoys the challenge her students provide.
“Any and all success I’ve had at whatever is just a reflection of the people I’ve been around, the people I grew up with, the people that educated me," said Sundheim, "Wouldn’t be here without them.”
