Fourty-six years in the making, volleyball coach Steve Haaser reached a milestone, winning 1,000 games.

“It was never a goal of mine to reach 1,000 wins. For me, it’s always to take one group, one game, and one season at a time but this is definitely a huge thing for my career and it was a really good feeling,” Haaser said.

Hired by first principal Victor Stewart in 1979, Haaser celebrates his fortieth year of coaching for the school. Haaser began coaching at I.C Junior high.

“The enjoyment of coaching is that I get to watch these girls mature and develop and being able to see my players move on and do amazing things is very rewarding,” Haaser said.

Winning gold bracket on Sept. 15 came during the Volley of the Valley tournament against Nettleton.

“I find pride in playing for a coach that has been here and won so many games. This shows off Southside really well and I am glad that he achieved this because he really deserves the best and gives his time and effort for us. It was time that he had the spotlight,” senior Micah Beth Brasher said.

Haaser plans to take each additional win as it comes. For now, he focuses on the remainder of the conference season.

“I enjoy what I am doing. I love working with my players. It’s easy to come to work at Southside every morning because my players are good at what they do and they work hard to win,” Haaser said.