Seiji Wood
Sports Editor
The Idaho State volleyball team enters the 2019 season with a new head coach in Sammi Stuart. The Bengals finished with a 19-14 record going 13-7 in the Big Sky Conference. They ended fourth in the conference last year and was voted sixth in the 2019 preseason coaches’ poll.
To improve from their season last year, they’ll have to do it with ISU’s 10th head volleyball coach, Sammi Stuart. Stuart was hired after previous coach Rick Reynolds surprised the team with his announcement not to return as head coach for the 2019 season.
“I am so excited to be the next head coach at Idaho State University,” said Stuart back in May. “I would like to thank President Satterlee and Athletic Director Pauline Thiros for taking the time to show me the direction and vision they have for Idaho State Athletics. The success the volleyball program has had along with the returning talent is something that really stood out to me as I ventured through this process. There is a lot of excitement and energy coming from the current student-athletes that really drew me in.”
Stuart was a member of the coaching staff that led a team of Mountain West All-Stars to a second-place finish at the 2017 European Global Challenge. The finish was the best result for the team in the history of the tournament.
Prior to her stint at Utah State, Stuart was an assistant coach at Arizona State. In Tempe, Stuart was part of the staff that led the Sun Devils to three consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances from 2012-14. Her day-to-day responsibilities included scouting, coordinating video and statistics and working with the liberos, the defense and passing.
“Sammi has a strong background with programs in three top volleyball conferences,” Idaho State Director of Athletics Pauline Thiros said. “She’s taken teams to the NCAA tournament multiple times, and is well connected within our recruiting footprint. During her visit it was evident that her values align with those of our department, and she is a great leader for the women of ISU Volleyball. I love her defensive acumen, and the fast pace of her style of play. She will create a very positive and competitive environment.”
Stuart will have a lot to work with. Most of the team will be returning to assist Stuart in her first season as head coach. Key players in Haylie Keck, Brooke Pehrson, Taylor Meeks and Chelsea Vaughan return along with other players who saw significant time on the court in Nikole Cook and Raegan Steiner.
Keck and Pehrson were both named to the all conference team last year. Keck won Libero of the Year in 2018 after collecting the 11th most digs in the nation with 635 last season. She broke her own ISU single-season record of 599 digs against Sacramento State to become the first to 600. She now holds the three most productive seasons in Idaho State history and is closing in on the all-time digs record.
Pehrson was Idaho State’s most efficient attacker last season with 264 kills on 581 attempts for a career-high .308 hitting percentage. She also added a team high 31 service aces. However, it was her defense that separated her from the field. Pehrson led the Big Sky and was No. 20 in the nation with 142 total blocks last year. She was also No. 56 in blocks per set with 1.21 while racking up a career-high 92 digs in 2018. Her 127 block assists ranks fifth in the Idaho State single-season records and she led or tied for the team lead in blocks in 20 of ISU’s 31 matches.
The Bengals open their season with nonconference play against Albany and Nebraska-Omaha on Aug. 30. Idaho State will continue their nonconference games and play teams such as Utah Valley, Washington State and Boise until they play their conference opener on the road against Southern Utah on Sep. 26.
