San José City College will field a women’s volleyball team for the first time since fall 2021, with a brand-new coaching staff eager to start competing.
“It’s fun building a team from scratch,” new head volleyball coach David Stanton said. “But it’s more fun to start playing.” So far, Stanton has recruited about a dozen student-athletes split between first- and second-year students. “However, finding a setter has been a challenge,” he said.
With the season’s first practice scheduled on July 17, Stanton is looking to recruit more players, including that elusive setter. Almost all recruits have played varsity or high-level club volleyball. The new team can count on an experienced coaching staff to guide it through the 16-game season.
Most recently, Stanton was a volunteer assistant coach at San José State University for the past three seasons for both beach and indoor volleyball while earning his master’s degree in Exercise Physiology. In those three seasons, he was on staff for the best beach season in school history in 2020 and the winningest indoor season in 2022, with a 21-win season and a Mountain West conference championship appearance.
The coach brings a formidable assistant to his staff, Latahevai “Vai” Lousi. She is a former star player with the SJSU Spartan squad, honored with a three-time All-Mountain West team selection. With 1,201 kills, she holds the 10th spot in career kills at SJSU. “Vai will be great at creating a family-style culture on the team, which is highly valued at SJCC,” Stanton said.
SJCC is not the only team going through coaching transitions in the CCCAA Coast South Conference, as West Valley and Gavilan also have new head coaches. Stanton said there is a lot of rust to shake off before the Cuesta Scrimmage Tournament in San Luis Obispo on Aug. 19, but the important thing is to get the Jaguars back in the game.
If you’re interested in trying out for the team contact Coach Stanton david.stanton@sjcc.edu