|
NC Elite Executive Board
|
Gary DeJames |
Executive Director |
|
Micholene Schumacher |
Director of Operations |
|
Sandy Merkel -DeJames |
Administrative
Director |
|
John Dillinger |
Administrative
Director |
|
Scott Crisco |
Secretary |
|
Dana Craig |
Treasurer/ Bookkeeper |
Gary DeJames
- Founder, Executive Director & 18-1 Assistant Coach
gary.dejames@ncelitevb.org
 Gary is one of the
founding members of NC Elite Volleyball Club and has been the
acting Executive Director since the club's inception in 2007. Gary has
been involved in coaching club volleyball in the
Carolina Region for the past 12 years. In those twelve years he
has coached his teams to 9 Carolina Region Championships
victories,
competed in 10 USAV National Championships and once in
the USAV National Invitational. Gary has also coached at numerous
high schools in NC including : Saint
Mary's School in Raleigh (3 seasons), Sanderson High School in Raleigh (3 seasons),
Broughton (1 season) and Cresset Christian Academy in Durham (1
season).
Honors included: one regular season Championship, three
Cap-6 Conference Tournament Championships, Cap-6 Conference Coach of the Year
in 2003 (Sanderson) and Carolina Christian Conference Coach of the Year in
1998(Cresset) . Before moving to the Carolinas, Gary
coached boys’ high school and JO volleyball in Buffalo New York.
Gary is a graduate of SUNY Buffalo where he finished with a B.S.
in Health and Wellness and a minor in Coaching and is a
certified strength and conditioning specialist (Certifications: NASM
-National
Academy of Sports Medicine and FIT -Fitness Institute of
Training). Currently Gary is a Territory Manager for Coram
Specialty Infusion Services.
Micholene Schumacher
- NC Elite Director of Operations
17-1 Co- Head Coach & 13-2 Head Coach
micholene@ncelitevb.org
 Micholene is an IMPACT and CAP
certified coach who began her volleyball career 8 years ago
by leading the Northern Middle School Volleyball Team to
back-to-back conference championships having only one loss
during her two year tenure. The past few seasons, Micholene has
spent time as head coach for the Person Rockets JV volleyball
team and assistant to the Varsity squad (2006 & 2007 4A
State Champions). This season, Micholene helped coach
her team to a 16U AAU National Title in 2011 in Orlando, FL
(one of three national titles brought home to the Carolina
Region in it's thirty year history) . In addition to
her 16U team, she coached our 13U developmental team. She was the assistant coach for the
Carolina Region's 18 Platinum Runner-Up team that earned a bid
to compete in the USAV JO National Championships in 2007.
During our inaugural season (2008),
her 13 Gold team finished runner up in the region.
Micholene continues to volunteer for the Person County Recreation Arts
and Parks youth volleyball league and has instructed their
summer
camp in years past.
She has
also worked as a program instructor for a local club’s Youth
Volleyball Program. In addition to coaching volleyball,
Micholene has coached basketball from recreation level through
middle school .
Sandra
Merkel-DeJames - -
NC Elite Administrative Director &
Resource Coach
sandy@ncelitevb.org
 Sandy has been
involved with club volleyball in the Raleigh area for the past 7
seasons. Sandy while coaching had successfully lead all of her teams to qualify
for the Junior Olympic National Championships in every
season she coached (2003, 2004, 2005,
2006 & 2007). Prior to moving to Raleigh, Sandy co-founded and
coached for Charlotte Elite Volleyball Club from 2000-2002. In
addition to her club volleyball coaching experience, Sandy has
coached numerous camps throughout Florida, North Carolina, South
Carolina and Tennessee and coached junior high school volleyball
in her hometown, Cincinnati OH. Sandy was a 3 sport
varsity standout at UNC Charlotte. She was a two time
all-conference setter and MVP with the Women's Varsity
Volleyball Team, MVP of the Women’s Varsity Track Team (heptathalon,
4x1 and 4x4 relays), and helped the UNC Charlotte Women's
Varsity Soccer Team win the Conference USA Championship in
1995. Sandy holds a BA in Psychology and a Ph.D. in Biology
from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and is
currently the
Global Commercial Development Manager for
Novozymes Biopharma.
John Dillinger -
NC Elite Administrative Director & 18-1 Head Coach
john.dillinger@ncelitevb.org
John has over 25 years of volleyball experience both as a player
and as a coach. John is a graduate of the United States Military
Academy at West Point where he played varsity volleyball for
legendary coach Bob Bertucci. After West Point, John continued
playing Adult USVBA (Now USAV) and became involved with coaching
various junior camps/ clinics/ teams with former coach Bob
Bertucci. John is currently the Owner/ CEO of Keystone
Transport.
Scott Crisco
- NC Elite Officer & 17-1 Co-Head Coach
scrisco@yahoo.com
Scott Crisco has over 20 years of volleyball experience both
coaching and playing and is entering into his fourth season
coaching with NC Elite. As a college coach Scott was the top
assistant at the University of South Alabama (Div-I, Sun Belt
Conference) from '96 - '00. During that time he also acted as
the recruiting coordinator. He has coached club volleyball in
Alabama and California with success both regionally and
nationally. As a player, Scott progressed from high school/club
volleyball in Southern California to junior college (Palomar
Junior College) and finally to San Diego State University. He
continues to compete in both USAV indoor and outdoor
competitions.
Laura Ackerman
-
NC Elite Resource
Coach
lauraeackerman@gmail.com
This is Laura's first season coaching with NC Elite. She has
13 years of playing experience, including 4 years at Wellesley
College, where she ranked among the program's all-time three
most effective offensive players. Laura has previously coached
with CCVC/TCA Raleigh, and is the current head coach of the
Woods Charter School varsity volleyball team, where she was the
founding coach in 2008. Laura works at the Woods Charter School
in Chapel Hill, where she teaches high school Spanish Language
and Literature.
Francois Atallah
- NC Elite 14-1 Head Coach
fjatallah@hotmail.com
 Francois has over 25 years of experience with volleyball as a
player and a coach. Prior to NC Elite, Francois was the director
of Capital City Volleyball Club for 2 consecutive years and has
coached in the Carolina Region for the past seven seasons. In
those past seven seasons he coached his teams to numerous
Carolina Region regular season victories , to a Carolina Region
Championship , to a Shamrock Festival championship in Roanoke,
VA and to a JO National tournament bid in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Historically his teams have finished in the top 5 every season
at the highest division in the Carolina Region. Francois also
coached the varsity team at Franklin Academy High school for 2
consecutive years and led his team to a record winning season.
Francois began playing club volleyball at the age of 13 in
France, continued through high school and went on to play for
the men’s club volleyball team at Syracuse University. He
graduated from SU with a Masters degree in Electrical
engineering and is currently employed at IBM designing
micro-processors. He holds 20 patents in the field of circuit
design.
Fiona Barkley
- NC Elite Recruiting Coordinator & Lead Training Coach
barkleyf@meredith.edu
 Fiona Barkley is currently the head coach of the Meredith College
volleyball team and was the assistant coach for the NC Elite
18-1 (2007-08) and most recently last season was NC Elite's
primary recruiting coordinator . Prior to her position at Meredith
College, Fiona was an assistant coach at N.C. State University
from 2004-2005. While at NC State Barkley trained defensive
systems and serving strategy. She also coordinated team travel,
support staff, special events, video scouting systems and
summer camps. Barkley’s coaching career also includes time as
assistant coach at Lynn University and recruiting coordinator at
her alma mater, Elon University. During her time at Elon, she
signed recruits who went on to earn team and conference honors.
She finished up her time at Elon in 2003 as interim head coach.
As a four-year collegiate letter winner at Elon University, Barkley
was named team captain and MVP. For her performance as an
outside hitter, she was named to Elon’s 1,000 Digs and 1,000
Kills Club. Barkley earned a Bachelor of Science in
leisure/sport management from Elon in 1999. Fiona currently is
a recruiter for The Greer Group, Inc., an employment recruiting
firm in Raleigh.
Tristy Bittikofer
- Staff Development Coordinator & NC Elite 16-1 Head Coach
Originally
from upstate New York, Tristy was a three-sport athlete in
high school, where she led her LaFayette HS volleyball teams
to four state championships. At St. Andrews Presbyterian
College (1992-1996), Tristy was a two-sport standout and
earned all-conference honors in both volleyball and softball
a total of seven times. Tristy was a collegiate middle
blocker who helped St. Andrews capture consecutive
conference titles and three consecutive post-season
tournament titles, and enjoyed an NAIA National Championship
run in 1993.
Tristy is an avid sand player. In 2008, she represented the
USA playing on a professional international tour in Turkey.
The six-week tour concluded with USA finishing second
overall. In 2010, she had her best year ever winning a total
of 23 outdoor tournaments including sand and grass doubles,
coed, king/queen and triples.
Tristy is a
CAP II certified coach with USA volleyball. She spent 6
years coaching with the Triangle Volleyball Club. In her
five years as a head coach of 14 black, she led her team to
four NC Region championships and one T-3 finish. In 2007,
her 14 Black took a T-13th place finish at the USA Junior
Olympic Volleyball Championships, the best-ever finish for
any 14s team from the Carolina Region. Tristy gives
private lessons, camps and clinics and volleyball is her
career. Volleyball is her passion and career and she
wishes to inspire others to reach their volleyball
aspirations. Her husband, Aaron is a musician and sound
engineer. They live in Raleigh.
Pheobe
Blankinship
- NC Elite 15-4 Assistant Coach
Bio coming
soon !
Jenn
Bunn
- NC Elite 13-1 Assistant Coach
jwise10@hotmail.com
Jen is in her first season as a club coach at NC Elite. She
brings six years of club coaching experience, having previously
coached 15’s, 16’s, and 17’s teams for Waco Juniors in Waco, TX
and Lexington Select in Lexington, KY. Jen was a four-year
letter winner at Nicholls State University where she was a
setter. After graduating from Nicholls with a degree in health
and physical education, she went on to receive her master’s from
the University of Kentucky in exercise physiology, and her Ph.D.
from Baylor University in exercise physiology and sport
nutrition. Jen currently works as a professor at Campbell
University.
Cathy
Clayton
- Head Coach Roxboro
claytonc@person.k12.nc.us
Cathy returns to NC Elite for another season of coaching a
regional team based out of Roxboro, NC. Cathy is also the
JV Head Coach and Varsity Assistant Coach at Person High School.
She has been coaching at Person the past five years. Last
season, the JV team finished second in the PAC6 Conference.
Prior to Person High School she helped lead Northern Middle
School to an undefeated season. Cathy has also enjoyed
coaching basketball and has offered her time as a volunteer at
the Person County Recreation Department during their summer
skills clinics. Cathy graduated from UNC Chapel Hill with
a degree in nursing and is a School Nurse for Person County.
Cathy has three grown children and her hobbies include travel,
tennis and photography.
Angela
Coticchio - NC Elite Assistant Coach
angelamarie41@hotmail.com
Angela has
coached club volleyball in the Raleigh area for the past 7
seasons and successfully qualified 3 of her teams to attend USA
JO Nationals. Angela has been the head coach for Athens Drive
High School since the 2003 and was named Coach of the Year in
2003 (TAAC), 2004 (TAAC) and 2005 (TRI-7). Prior to coaching at
Athens Drive, she was the Head Coach of the Northern Vance
Junior Varsity Volleyball Team. Angela has coached Club
Volleyball in the Carolina Region in both Vance County (Vance
County 15s) and the Raleigh area (Gladiators 16s). Angela's
playing experience includes High School Volleyball in Buffalo,
New York as well as Club Volleyball with the Cheetah Volleyball
Club. Angela is a graduate of SUNY Fredonia and holds a B.S. in
Mathematics and Secondary Education as well as a B.A. in
Psychology. She currently teaches A.P. Statistics at Athens
Drive High School in Cary.
Kevin Daniels
- NC Elite Strength and Conditioning Coach, Lead Training
Coach & 17-1 Assistant Coach
kdaniels@peace.edu
 Kevin will take on a dual role this
season with NC Elite as a lead training coach and
strength/conditioning specialist for the club. Currently Kevin
is the head coach at Peace College in Raleigh. He took over that
program after assistant coaching the women’s program at UNLV. In
Las Vegas, Kevin also owned PlyoCity and worked as a personal
trainer. From 2006-2008 he served as the head coach of the
Carolina Region High Performance team and has spent time
assisting with Eastern Wayne HS program while living in
Goldsboro. Kevin spent four years with the US Air Force Security
Forces and graduated with a BS in recreation and exercise
science from Mount Olive College in North Carolina.
 Allison Davis
-
NC Elite 18-1 & 14-1 Assistant Coach
& Development League Director
adavis1470@gmail.com
Bio coming
soon !
Oguz Degirmenci
-
NC Elite ResourceCoach
degirmenci.oguz@gmail.com
Oguz has been coaching in the
Raleigh area for five years and is entering his third season
with NC Elite. He is CAP I and AAU Double Goal Coaching
Certified. This year, he coached his 16s team to a
national title at the AAU 16U National Championships in Orlando,
FL which brings the region total of National Championships to
three in the history of the program.
Oguz brings over twenty years of
volleyball experience (eight years as a professional player in
Turkey as a setter/right side hitter). In addition, he
runs AAU junior and adult beach volleyball tournaments and
clinics throughout the spring/summer in the Triangle Area and
has recently received his zonal beach volleyball refereeing
certification in South Carolina. Oguz is an active and
successful beach volleyball defensive specialist who has won
many local beach and grass doubles tournaments throughout North
Carolina and Virginia. He travels and competes on several
professional beach volleyball tours (AVP, NVL, Toyota Pro Beach,
EVP Tour, East End and Wide Open). He also continues to
compete as a setter in indoor USAV competitions. Oguz
maintains a regular clientele of both NC Elite players as well
as other local players for private lessons and is available to
add more clients throughout the year as space available.
Oguz is also an inventor and
manufacturer of Boardee Portable Scoreboard featured on this
page.
Shaun Dyk
- NC Elite 15-1 Co-Head Coach
shaundyk@gmail.com
 Shaun has been around
volleyball for 18+ years. He started by helping
with his sister's club team (CJV- Charlotte) and
went on to coach at her High School, Mooresville
High School. Shaun played for NC State’s Men's Club
Team as a Freshman and a Sophomore in 1998-2000.
They achieved a NIRSA rank of Top 10 both years.
Prior to his junior year Shaun transferred to
California Baptist University, an NAIA School.
After finishing 3rd place in the Final
NAIA Tournament, Shaun went on to win the NAIA
National Championship the following two years in
2004 and 2005. He was named the NAIA Tournament MVP
in 2004 and was placed in "Faces in the Crowd"
edition in Sports Illustrated. Shaun and California
Baptist went on to beat many Top 10 Division I teams
in his years there including BYU, Hawaii & USC.
After graduating with a Business degree, Shaun was
invited to train with the USA National Team and
trained from June 2005-January 2006 and from May
2006 – August 2006 under 2008 Olympic Gold-Winning
Coaches Hugh McCutcheon and Ron Larson. He started
playing Pro in January 2006 and won two National
Championships for ArkasSpor Club in Izmir, Turkey.
His final year of playing Pro was in Paphos, Cyprus
where they placed 2nd. Shaun now lives
and works in Raleigh and is excited to start
implementing the wide variety coaching tactics he
has amassed from all over the world.
Shonna Frank
- NC Elite Resource Coach
shonna.frank@gmail.com
Shonna is in her second year as a coach
with club volleyball. She is originally from Gaithersburg,
Maryland and started her volleyball career at Gaithersburg High
School as a middle hitter/blocker. She was a three year varsity
starter and letter winner. Shonna played club volleyball for
Montgomery Village Sports Association (MVSA) where she was able
to attend the National Championship Tournament with her 16’s
team in New Orleans in 1999 and with her 18’s team in Salt Lake
City in 2001.
Shonna graduated from
North Carolina State University in 2005 with a B.S. in Business
Management. She currently works for Summit Hospitality Group,
Ltd., a Hotel Management/Development company in Raleigh. In her
spare time Shonna and her husband Steve enjoy cheering on the
N.C. State Wolfpack and Carolina Panthers.
Frank Garrick
- NC Elite Coach
frankg777@yahoo.com
Frank has more than 20 years of
volleyball experience as a player and coach. He has
coached several men’s and women’s club and intramural teams at
Oral Roberts University in Oklahoma and played on numerous city
and club teams in New Jersey. Frank was the Head Coach at Mother
Seton Regional High School in New Jersey leading his girls to
the 3rd round of the 1996 Mountain Valley Conference
Championship. In North Carolina, Frank has coached 12’s and 13’s
for 3 years with CCVC/TCA and last year 14’s with Elite. He also
frequently plays locally in grass tournaments with Wake County
Volleyball Club. Frank has a passion for the game and his number
one priority is to motivate and inspire athletes and to get them
excited about improving their skills. Frank lives in Wake Forest
and works full time on his business, Triangle Tutoring &
Enrichment,
www.TutoringNC.com.
Mark Glende
- NC Elite 15-2 Assistant Coach
mark.glende@gmail.com
This is Mark's first season
with NC Elite. His previous experience includes assisting summer
Volleyball camps, local parks & recreation teams and coaching
three seasons of Boys Volleyball at the Middle School and High
School levels in Upstate New York. Following a promotion to
Junior Varsity head coach, and a successful year with his 7th &
8th grade players, he lead the JV team out of an 0-16 season to
a 12-4 then 10-6 record in his two-season tenure before moving
to Raleigh. Mark's interest for the game began during his
sophomore year of High School where he ended up playing three
years on the JV/Varsity squads along with one season on the PACE
Bootlegger club team. He continued his playing career at
Medaille College in Buffalo, New York as their starting Libero/Defensive
Specialist competing in two Molten Division III National
Championships in 2004 (2nd) & 2005 (4th). Mark remains active as
a player by participating in local indoor leagues, outdoor
tournaments and other USAV events. He resides in Apex and is
currently an 8th Grade Math teacher at Dillard Drive Middle
School in Raleigh.
Jamie Hall
- Floating Assistant Coach
jamie@damianhall.net
 Jamie is a second year
coach with NC Elite. She brings 15 years of playing and coaching
experience. Most recently Jamie was the NC Elite 15-1 coach last
season and assistant coach at The Franciscan School in Raleigh.
Jamie graduated from Loyola College in Maryland, where she
completed both her Bachelors and Masters degrees in Education.
During her 4 years on the Division-I varsity team, she was a
Libero and selected as team captain for both her junior and
senior years. Her junior year she was named the team's MVP, and
that same year she was invited to, and attended, the U.S.A.
National Team try-out in Colorado Springs, Colorado. In high
school, Jamie was a 3 year varsity starter and played for both
the Fort Wayne Volleyball Club and the Connecticut Juniors.
During both her junior and senior years of high school she was
named Connecticut 1st Team All-State and 1st Team All-Conference
as an OH. She currently lives with her husband in Raleigh and is
the learning specialist at The Franciscan School in Raleigh.
Lindsay Hamrick
- NC Elite 15-4 Head Coach
lehamrick@gmail.com
Lindsay has been
around volleyball as a player and coach for over 12 years. As a
player, she helped lead her high school team to a AAA state
championship and went on to UNC-Chapel Hill and was an integral
member of the women’s club volleyball team. Lindsay is involved
and continues to compete on a local USA volleyball women’s adult
team and also plays in many local outdoor doubles events.
Lindsay first began coaching club volleyball in 2004 with a 13
and under team based out of Chapel Hill. Lindsay now lives in
Raleigh and teaches 7th grade math at Martin Middle
School where she is also the assistant coach for the volleyball
team.
Catron (Blankinship) Horton
- Floating Assistant Coach
catron.horton@salix.com
Catron (Blankinship)
Horton has played volleyball in the Raleigh area for the last
fifteen years and has coached for the last five seasons. Catron,
a two-time H.S. MVP, was the starting setter for Cardinal
Gibbons’ 1999 team, which ranked #9 in the national Top 25 poll
by Volleyball Magazine. At Gibbons (99-00), she not only helped
the team achieve two undefeated seasons (winning conference and
state championships), but also broke several school records in
the process. Her #1 jersey has since been retired by
Cardinal Gibbons. After
high school Catron played club ball at
NC State University, twice
leading her club team to NIRSA Volleyball National
Championships. Catron still
continues to compete
in adult USAV and currently works for Salix Pharmaceuticals.
Steve Kidder
- NC Elite 17-2 Co- Head Coach
kidder_steve@hotmail.com
 Steve
will be entering his second year at NC Elite
Volleyball Club. Last season, Steve coached our
18-1 team with Coach Stevie Mussie. Prior to his
experience with NC Elite Steve coached 16’s with
Colorado Avalanche Volleyball Club in Eagle,
Colorado. In addition to coaching volleyball, he is
an avid indoor and outdoor player. He competes in a
number of different east coast sand competitions and
plays grass and indoor USAV as well enjoying at
least three top three finishes for each of the past
four years. He has an extensive fitness and
personal training resume and has trained Oakland
Raider, Bill Romanowski and former Carolina Panther,
Brad Hoover. He resides in Raleigh and is a
Director of Wellness and Conditioning for a local
company.
Joel Knaub
- NC Elite 14-2 Head Coach
jknaub@nc.rr.com
Joel is entering his 16th
season as a coach Carolina Region and 2nd with NC Elite.
He was the head coach of the CCVC 14-1 teams for six seasons,
leading his teams to three JO National Championship bids, and to
championships in the Shamrock Festival and the South Atlantic
Championships. Joel was also the assistant coach of the 2002
Carolina Region 17's champions. Joel completed his Coaching
Accreditation Program (CAP) Level I certification in 2003. Joel
played four years in USAV for the Sanford Volleyball Club. He
currently plays in the Cary recreational league. He
graduated from the University of Maryland with a B.S. in
Computer Science, and is a employed as a software engineer by
Computer Task Group, working at IBM.
Sara Kylor
- Floating Coach
sek5000@gmail.com
 Sara began playing volleyball in high school and had
a very influential coach who created a love for the game. In
high school, she played on a club team that was named East Coast
Champions in 2003. She was a member of the state championship
team in 2004 and went on to play in college. She attended Penn
State Altoona and holds the records for career kills leader and
most kills in a 3, 4, and 5 game match. She was named MVP and
first team all-conference in 2006, the year her team won the
Alleghany Mountain Conference. She continues to play volleyball
both indoors and outdoors, playing on a USAV team, Cary League
and numerous outdoor tournaments. Sara is entering into her
third season coaching club volleyball in the area and is excited
to share her passion for the sport with our student-athletes.
Romel Lightbourn
- NC Elite 16-2 Assistant Coach & 14-4 Head Coach
romellightbourn@gmail.com
 Romel
brings 16+ years of volleyball experience to NC Elite as both
player and coach. Romel graduated from Barber-Scotia
College in Concord, NC where he earned a Bachelor's degree in
Business Administration. He participated in track and
field and accomplished All American honors each season.
Post graduation, Romel pursued a beach volleyball career in
California at the international level (FIVB and AVP).
While transitioning from indoor to outdoor he began his
volleyball coaching career on the legendary State Beach in
California.
He has played on the Bahamas Beach Volleyball
National Team, International Jammer Volleyball, Bahamas Senior
National Volleyball Team as well as their Junior National
Volleyball Team. Romel has enjoyed coaching in the region
since 2006 and looks forward to bringing his experiences to NC
Elite Volleyball Club. He has earned many recognitions
some of which include All Region and All Tournament accolades as
well as 3rd place in both 1st round World Championship
Qualifier in 2010 and 2nd round of World Championship Qualifier
2010 in Jamaica and Cuba, respectively.
Deanna Ludwick
- NC Elite 16-3 Co Head Coach & 15-3 Head Coach
gscoach16@aol.com
Deanna has been coaching club volleyball in
the Raleigh area since 2007. She previously lived in Ohio where
she coached club volleyball for 5 years. She also coached High
School Varsity for 5 years. Deanna won 3 varsity letters in
High School and at Mount Union College. Currently
Deanna is a Program Director for the Girl Scouts – North
Carolina Coastal Pines here in Raleigh. She lives in
Morrisville with her husband Larry and they have two children.
Annette is a 2009 Graduate of Greensboro College and is a
Physical Therapist Technician and her son Jordan is a freshman
at North Carolina State University.
Davene Mainwaring
- NC Elite 12-2 Assistant Coach
davene13@gmail.com
Davene has been
involved in volleyball since her elementary school days and
continues today. She first coached club when Juniors level was
initially introduced. Her recent club coaching experiences
include Cary YMCA Boys, Spikeforce, CCVC, and TCA. The
2012 season will be her second season with NC Elite. She
coached the 13-1 team last season. Davene
coached middle school at Cary Academy and has been the head
volleyball coach at NC School of Science and Mathematics for the
past 9 years. Davene played volleyball in high school in
Illinois, club at Purdue University, USVBA/USAV in North
Carolina, and city leagues in Chapel Hill, Durham, Raleigh, and
Cary. Davene graduated from Purdue University with a B.S. in
Computer Science.
Lauren McManus
- NC Elite 15-1 Co-Head Coach
renniemac11@yahoo.com
Lauren has coached club volleyball for the past 6 years, and for
the last four seasons she has been involved with CCVC /TCA.
She was an assistant coach and co-head coach for the 16-1 and
15-1 teams respectively. Lauren also coached the Broughton
High School JV team to its best record in ten years during the
2007 season. Lauren is a local player who played at Garner High
School and earned All-Conference Awards during her Junior and
Senior seasons and the Player of the Conference award as a
Senior. She played club volleyball locally and during her 17s
season helped her team win Regional Championships and a qualify
for a Bid to USA Junior Olympic Nationals. Lauren went on to
attend St. Andrews Presbyterian College in Laurinburg, North
Carolina where she was a four year starting right side player
for a team who had ranked defensively in the top 3 in the
country three out of her four seasons. She was a part of a
Knight’s team that made it to the NCAA Tournament in 2004 and in
her senior year, Lauren received the prestigious "Knights Award"
for her exceptional leadership skills .
Alexa Micek
- NC Elite 17-1 Assistant Coach
 Alexa
is a junior Engineering student at NC State University.
She is a defensive specialist for the Wolfpack and will bring a
tremendous depth of game knowledge and experience to the club.
Alexa is from Oxnard, California and was a 4 year varsity
athlete at Oak Park High School, two of which she earned MVP
honors. She was a 1st team All Tri-Valley League player
and attended Pierce Junior College where in 2009 she lead the
Western State Conference in digs. She understands the
importance of leadership and was captain of her team in her
junior and senior years in high school. Alexa played club
for both Point West Volleyball Club and Santa Monica Beach Club.
She joined the Wolfpack in 2010. Prior to leaving
California, Alexa enjoyed coaching with Santa Monica Beach Club
and at Sierra Canyon Middle School.
Stevie Mussie
- NC Elite 13-1 Head Coach
stevie.mussie@gmail.com
 Stevie
returns to NC Elite for her second season in 2011. She was
the head coach for the 18-1 team that earned a bid to USAV
Nationals. She is also
in her second season at NC State as an
Assistant Volleyball Coach. She was a four-year letter
winner in college. Stevie Graduated from Washington
University following two years at Pacific. She was a
highly successful outside hitter recording many double-double
performances throughout her career. Stevie enjoyed a #10
ranking among PAC-10 players during her career and was named
most outstanding player at the Seattle Regional in the NCAA
Tournament as a senior. She was recognized as first-team
All-PAC 10. She holds the 10th-best mark in school history
in attacks and was ranked fifth all-time in both points and
kills per game. During her juniors career she was among
the Fab 50 for Volleyball Magazine in 2003. Stevie
graduated from University of Washington with a bachelor of arts
degree in Sociology.
Megan Murphy- Pippit
- Floating Coach
megan.pippitt@yahoo.com
Megan is in her fifth season
as a club coach and most recently was the assistant
coach of NC Elite’s 16-1 team last season. Megan
graduated from the University of North Carolina at
Asheville where she played varsity volleyball as a
defensive specialist/libero and earned her degree in
health care management. Prior to UNCA, Megan played
volleyball for Watauga High School in Boone, NC as a
3-year varsity starter and team captain. Since living in
the Triangle area, Megan as played multiple years
of women's USAV indoor as well as numerous outdoor
leagues and tournaments. Currently Megan is living in
Durham, NC with her husband Chas Pippitt, and is working
at UNC Hospital (Chapel Hill, NC) as the Anesthesia
Residency Program Coordinator.
Galina Podolsky
- NC Elite 16-1 Assistant Coach & 15-2 Head Coach
podolsky.galina@gmail.com
Galina is a recent graduate of St. Andrews
Presbyterian College where she completed a
Bachelor's Degree in Psychology and Spanish, and was
an award winning player during her four years.
She has ten years of playing experience and has been
coaching and giving private lessons for multiple
seasons. She nas assisted the Broughton High
School program for the past couple of summers.
As a player, Galina was a high school MVP for two
years and record holder in kills, aces, and blocks.
Galina earned Freshman of the Year in '06,
All-Conference Honorable Mention '07 and '09, Second
Team All-Conference '08, MVP and Captain '08 and
'09. She was selected 2008 NCCSIA All-State
Volleyball Team. Galina continues to train,
play and coach indoor and outdoor volleyball.
Galina coached NCVBA last season and found much
success. Her team medaled twice and finished
3rd at the Quest for Excellence Tournament.
Ethan Roseborough
- NC Elite 18-2 Co-Head Coach
Bio coming
soon !
Joella Schiepan
- NC Elite Coach 16-2 Head Coach & 14-3 Head Coach
jschiepan@gmail.com
 Joella
is entering her fourth season of coaching in North Carolina and
is excited to be coaching with NC Elite again this upcoming
season. She has been involved in volleyball as a player and a
coach for over 15 years (Idaho, Oregon and North Carolina). As a
high school player in Idaho, she helped lead her Boise High team
to back to back district championships wins and to the state
championship as a junior and senior. She played for Boise River
Volleyball Club for 3 years, attending regional and national
tournaments throughout the western US. In college, she attended
NCAA Division II Humboldt State in northern California
(1998-2002) where she received MVP, All Offensive Player of the
Year, and All Tournament Honors. She was also an Honorable
Mention All Conference player her junior year and a member of
the All Conference 2nd team her senior year. Joella continues to
compete on a local USA volleyball women’s adult team that has
attended Adult Nationals the last 4 years (Atlanta, Minneapolis,
Phoenix, Dallas) and she also plays in local outdoor doubles and
triples tournaments. Joella first began coaching club volleyball
in 2002 with a 15-1 team for her alma mater (Boise River
Volleyball Club), she also coached for the Oregon Suns (Bend,
OR) for 2 years (15-1, 16-2). Most recently, she was the head
coach for the CCVC 13-1's, CCVC/TCA 14-2's and NC Elite 15-2.
Ashley Shade
- 17-2 Assistant Coach
charlesriley79@yahoo.com
Ashley brings 10 years of playing experience as a first year
coach with NC Elite. She graduated from North Carolina Central
University with a Bachelors degree in Physical Education and a
concentration in Exercise and Sports Science with honors. In
2005, she was named to the All Rookie Team. Her team
earned back Conference Championships in 2005 and 2006. Ashley is
a setter and played 4 years as setter as well as right-side
during her senior season. She holds second in the record book
for all-time assists. During high school Ashley was a three year
varsity starter and played for the Brushy Mountain Volleyball
Club. She lives in Raleigh and works as a Personal Trainer at O2
Fitness at both the Perry Creek and Wakefield locations.
Jess Soler
- NC Elite
12-1 Head Coach
jesssoler@hotmail.com
 Jess has over 20 years of volleyball experience as a player,
and over 10 years as a coach. She has coached at both the
high school Varsity and MS levels, and currently coaches MS
volleyball at Durham Academy. She has run numerous summer
volleyball camps and clinics for beginner through advanced
players of all ages, and has been coaching club volleyball
at the U13 level for the past few years. Jess was a two
sport varsity athlete in college (Albright College), setting
school records for career assists and service aces, and the
triple jump and long jump (track & field). She was named
Freshman Athlete of the year, was a two time All-Conference
setter, and earned the Student/Athlete award her senior
year. Jess holds a BA in Psychology and Elementary
Education, and currently works in first grade at Durham
Academy.
Cori Spade 2009
- NC Elite 13-2 Assistant Coach
spadecor@email.meredith.edu
Cori Spade is currently a Junior Outside Hitter at Meredith
College and majoring in fashion design. Her sophomore year at
Meredith she was team MVP and an All-Conference Team Honorable
Mention. She is a graduate of Athens Drive and while there
earned Tri-7 All Conference Honors 3 of her 4 seasons and was
named her team's MVP both her junior and senior seasons. Cori is
also a charter member and recent NC Elite Alumnae who received
Carolina Region Championships All Tournament Honors in both her
sophomore and senior seasons.
Cori coached our inaugural season for the Volley U
program and helped make it a great experience for our players
new to volleyball.
Hannah Su h
- NC Elite
14-4
Assistant Coach
hannah.s.suh@gmail.com
Hannah was a PAC6 defensive
player during her high school career and an alumnae of Jordan
High School '07. She was a team captain and libero during
her senior season. She was also an All Conference
Selection to finish off her high school career.
Hannah enjoyed a club volleyball experience at William and Mary
where she graduated in 2010 as a Biology major. She is
currently employed by Quintiles as a Clinical Trials Assistant.
She looks forward to bringing her defensive knowledge and
experience to the club as an Assistant Coach while gaining
valuable coaching experience and offering training, motivation
and encouragement to our younger players.
Bryan Talik- NC Elite
16-3 Co-Head Coach
bryanjt@yahoo.com
Bryan has over 20 years of volleyball experience both as a
player and a coach. This is his first season coaching at NC
Elite. After moving to Raleigh in 2006 Bryan coached club
volleyball for 4 seasons at CCVC and TCA. Bryan started playing
volleyball in recreation leagues in high school and went on to
play for the men's club volleyball team at Michigan State
University. Bryan moved to Rochester, MN in 1993 to begin his
career at IBM and was active in playing USAV in the North
Country Region and coaching middle school and high school
volleyball. Bryan has two daughters who love volleyball as much
as he does and are looking forward to their 13s and 15s season
this year. When he is not coaching or watching his daughters
play volleyball, Bryan enjoys golfing, fishing, and exploring
the outdoors.
Katie Tatum
2010
- Clinician
kmt7345@uncw.edu
Katie
is an NC Elite Alumnae who played under Coaches Gary DeJames and Scott
Crisco for a total of five seasons. She was a recruited outside
hitter at University of Central Florida before transferring to UNC
Wilmington as a Student Assistant due to a career ending injury.
Katie has a tremendous volleyball background and a number of successes
throughout her career. Katie was named PAC6 Conference Player of
the Year in her junior and senior seasons and a two-time NC 4A State
Champion as well as a four-time PAC6 Conference Champion which included
an undefeated league record during her senior run. Katie holds
multiple NC regional champion honors. She was a participant of
USAV High Performance Program making the National A2 Team in 2010.
Katie was an avid outdoor player during her high school career and holds
many tournament wins and a regional championship and national bid for
sand doubles with her partner and NC Elite Alumnae, Melissa Zidar.
Katie is currently working on her degree in Education at UNC Wilmington
and is broadening her knowledge of the game working under Coaches
Bambenek and Bonetti of UNCW. She will serve as a clinician and
floating coach during the 2012 club season.
Meagan Tatum
- Clinician
mct74@cornell.edu
 Meagan
Tatum has been Captain of the Cornell Volleyball Team for both
her junior and senior seasons. She has played as both an
outside and right side hitter during her career at Cornell
University. Meagan will graduate in May as an Art History
Major. She joined NC Elite as a Clinician this past
December and will continue to contribute to our programming.
During high school, Meagan was a four-time letter winner at
Person High School and made three appearances in the State
Championships winning two titles and being named MVP in her
senior year. Meagan hails multiple All-Tournament
selections and was named as an Academic All-American in her
senior year of high school. She played for both Coach Gary
DeJames and Coach Sandy Merkel-DeJames and earned a bid to
nationals and committed to Cornell under their coaching.
Meagan also participated in many outdoor events at both the junior and
adult level and earned several tournament wins. Most recently she
finished champion of the Women's A division with her partner and NC
Elite player, Molly Tatum.
Penelope graduated from University of Miami in 2005 as the
Hurricanes' all-time leader in kills. While at Miami she
earned First-Team All-BIG EAST honors twice (’02 and ’03), was
named BIG EAST Player of the Year, and was placed on the
American Volleyball Coaches Association's All-Northeast Region
First Team in 2002 and 2003. In 2004 she earned First-Team
All-ACC honors and AVCA All-American honors. While in Miami,
Penelope coached as a Junior and Senior for the South Florida
Club Team. After graduation Penelope played overseas for teams
in Italy and Spain for over 2 years.
Prior to U of M, Penelope was a member of the 1999 Peruvian
National Team and was selected as a starter during the 1999
South American Competition; her team also competed in the
Pre-World Championships. She was a member of the Peruvian
national team in 2000 that placed third in the XII South America
Championships and also qualified for World Cup Competition.
She was named a starter for the 2000 Older Age Group Peruvian
National Team that finished fourth in the South American
Championships while her state All-Star Team placed second at the
Peruvian National competition in 2000.
In North Carolina, Penelope coached at NCVBA for two seasons,
her first season she led Academy 15 to finish 1st in Gold
Division and worked with Academy 15 Crystal her second season
which medaled twice and finished 3rd at the Quest for Excellence
Tournament. Currently, she lives in Cary and works as an
Intelligence Analyst for a Federal Government Agency.
Annette Watson -
NC Elite Assistant Coach
annette.watson@gmail.com
Bio coming
soon !
MEET THE VOLLEY U STAFF
Renata Fecteau
- Volley U Director
volleyu@hotmail.com
Renata
Fecteau was the Varsity Coach at FVHS for the four
seasons with another two years at the JV level in 2005
and 2006. She has coached club volleyball for the past
several years with area clubs including NC Challengers,
Triangle VBC and FVAA Select. She has 30+ years of
playing experience in both indoors and outdoor doubles.
Renata helped form the rec youth volleyball program in
Fuquay Varina years ago and currently runs the youth
volleyball indoor and grass programs at the Kraft YMCA
in Holly Springs. She ran the Volley U Developmental
Program with NC Elite in the 2010-2011 season and
expects another successful season in 2012.
Emily Bolch
- Volley U Coach
Eabolch2@ncsu.edu
Emily Bolch is currently a senior at NC State University
majoring in textile and fashion management. Emily has been
involved with volleyball for the past 7 years and a player and
most recently as a youth training coach and assistant coach of
14-1 NC elite team last season. Emily played high
school volleyball at Sanderson in Raleigh, NC
where she earned Cap 6 All-Conference honors both her junior and
senior seasons.
Molly Eriksson
- Volley U Coach
meriksso@live.unc.edu
 Molly
Eriksson is a junior at UNC-Chapel Hill majoring in
Communications and Cultural Studies. She has been playing
volleyball for over 7 years, on club teams such as CCVC and FVAA.
She has had experience with Triangle, CCVC and NC Elite camps
throughtout the years. Molly played for Athens Drive High School
all 4 years, as a setter, defensive specialist and right-side
hitter. Molly graduated from Athens Drive in 2009, with 4 years
of Academic All-Conference and 2 years of All-Conference honors.
She acted as a captain of the team for 2 years, as well. Molly
now plays for intramural and sand volleyball teams at UNC. She
is new to Volley U and thrilled to start a great season!!
Natlie Clemens
- Volley U Coach
Natalie Clemens has been playing volleyball for almost 20 years!
She played four years at Kent Roosevelt High School in Kent,
Ohio, along with three years on a traveling club team in
Northeast Ohio. She continued her volleyball career at Kent
State University where she played one year on the Varsity Team
as a defensive specialist and three years on their club team.
After graduating with a degree in Leisure Studies she moved down
south, where she took her volleyball skills to the beach. Since
then, she enjoys playing doubles on the sand and in the grass.
She is looking forward to her first year with NC Elite and hopes
to share her passion for the game with each and every player!
Adria Fecteau
- Volley U Coach
fecteau@email.unc.edu
Adria Fecteau is a 2009 graduate of Fuquay Varina
High School and while there earned Tri-8 All
Conference Honors all 4 seasons, Tri-8 Player of the
Year in 2007 and was named her team's MVP every
year. She was a setter for NC Challengers and
Triangle VBC and played at the University of Georgia
her freshman year of college. Adria coached
our Volley U program last season and helped make it
a great experience for our players new to
volleyball. Adria also serves as an official
for the the Women's Junior Volleyball League and is currently a
student at UNC
Chapel Hill and will be entering the UNC Eshelman
School of Pharmacy the fall of 2012.Chapel Hill studying pre-pharmacy.
Carla Lunday
- Volley U Coach
lundayca@email.meredith.edu
Carla Lunday is a freshman defensive
specialist and outside hitter for Meredith College. She is
majoring in Interior Design with minors in both Studio Art and
Business Administration. She is a graduate of Eastern Alamance
High School where she earned Mid-State 3A All-Conference Honors
during her junior and senior years; she was named to the
Mid-State 3A All-Tournament Team her senior year and also served
as team captain. She played for Alamance Force Volleyball Club
and CHAVC, where she earned Carolina Region All-Tournament
honors. Although Carla is new to Volley U this year, she has
worked with several volleyball camps during the summer months
and helped younger girls develop their fundamental skills. She
is excited and eager to meet all of the girls and start the
season!
Molly Markley
- Volley U Coach
markleym@email.meredith.edu
Molly Markley is currently a sophomore at
Meredith College double majoring in sociology and criminolgy.
She is a middle hitter on the Meredith College volleyball team.
Molly is a graduate from Mooresville High School where she
recieved all conference honors in volleyball her junior and
senior years. Her senior year, she was honored with the
offensive player of the year award. Molly also played
three years with the Race City Volleyball Club. At
Meredith College, Molly recieved the best offensive player award
her freshman year. Molly is new to Volley U this year and
is excited to be apart of it!
M adi
Smith
- Volley U Coach
masmith695@gmail.com
Madi Smith is currently a senior at UNC-Chapel Hill majoring in
Spanish and Global Studies. She has been playing volleyball for
10+ years and has played both defensive specialist and
setter for Cary Y SpikeForce, Triangle VBC & Athens Drive High
School. As a 2008 graduate of Athens Drive, she received
Academic All-Conference recognition 3 years, All-Conference her
junior and senior years, and was selected to play on the Tri-8
All-Star team her senior year. She continues to play in the
intramural league at UNC and in sand tournaments. This is
Made's second year helping with the Volley U program and she is
excited to be back for another great season!
Additional Floating Volley U Coaches
Lindsay Hamrick, Phoebe Blankenship, Micholene Schumacher & Cori Spade
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