After serving as interim head coach since March, Matt Ulmer was officially named as the University of Oregon’s head women’s volleyball coach earlier this month.
Ulmer was associate head coach for the Ducks in the fall of 2016, having previously served two years as an assistant coach.
The 32-year old was promoted to head coach and given a one-year contract at Oregon after Jim Moore stepped down from the position in mid-March. He resigned after accusations that he mistreated athletes, with the official announcement from the school saying “Coach Moore and the UO have come to realize that his coaching style is mismatched with the standards of the University of Oregon athletic department. He has acknowledged that his coaching style may have been viewed negatively by some student-athletes and, for that, he is sorry.”
Ulmer also will act as head beach volleyball coach for the Ducks, taking over for Stacy Metro, who is Moore’s wife.
“I love being a Duck, and love working with the young women on this team,” Ulmer said in a feature story. “My family and I love living in Eugene and being a part of this community. I’d like to say thank you to (UO senior administrators) Rob Mullens and Lisa Peterson for giving me the opportunity to do what I love, where I love.”
Head coach Matt Ulmer leading Oregon volleyball into a new era #GoDuckshttps://t.co/gHQPm9iJdM
— Oregon Volleyball (@OregonVB) April 14, 2017
Oregon has made three straight NCAA Tournament appearances, including a Sweet 16 appearing in 2014. The Ducks advanced to the second round in 2016 after finishing 21-10, including a 13-7 Pac-12 mark.
Three players garnered All-America acclaim during Ulmer’s time as an assistant, including a third team and an honorable mention selection in 2016.
The Ducks signed the No. 2 recruiting class in the nation in 2016, with Ulmer acting as the recruiting coordinator. Oregon also boasted top 10 classes in 2014 and 2015.
Prior to his time in Eugene, Ulmer was on the coaching staff at Long Beach State for seven seasons, spending five as a full-time assistant. He also acted as the 49ers beach volleyball head coach, leading the team to the 2013 national championship, becoming the youngest head coach to win a Division I volleyball championship.
Ulmer coached four beach All-Americans and boasts 25 former players who have played at the professional level.
In 2012, the former Division III All-American, was honored as one of the American Volleyball Coaches Association’s Thirty Under 30 recipients. A 2006 Carthage College alum, Ulmer led the team to two National Championship appearances and garnered first team All-America honors as a senior. Ulmer, who also was an assistant women’svolleyball club coach at Carthage, earned his master’s from the school in 2008 and was inducted into the Carthage Hall of Fame in 2014.
Oregon loses libero Amanda Benson and hitter Kacey Nady, but returns setters Maggie Scott and August Raskie, hitters Taylor Agost and Lindsey Vander Weide, and the sophomores Willow Johnson, Brooke Van Sickle, Jolie Rasmussen and Ronika Stone.
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