Nazareth College Women's Volleyball

Veteran head coach Tara Jehlen was named Nazareth Women's Volleyball Head Coach in April 2023.  Jehlen completed her second season at the helm of the women's volleyball program in 2024, guiding the Golden Flyers to their first Empire 8 regular season title since 2003 and being named the E8 Coaching Staff of the Year. Nazareth advanced to the E8 Tournament for the 19th consecutive year, earning the No.1 seed for the Empire 8 Championshipa and falling in the title match to St. John Fisher. In the 2024 season, Nazareth went 17-14 and 10-1 in conference play. The 17 wins marked the most for the women's volleyball program since the 2018 season. Senior standout Tessa Grover was named the Empire 8 Player of the Year, Nazareth's first since 2014, and repeated as an honorable mention All-American. Joining Grover on the Empire 8 First Team was outside hitter Leah Fusilli, while first-year Alana Lucey was second team, and libero Jenna Mattison third team. Three Golden Flyers were Academic All-District selections.  In 2023 Jehlen led the team to the Empire 8 Tournament, coaching junior Tessa Grover to All-American status. In addition, Jehlen guided a pair of All-Empire 8 selections and three Academic All-District honorees. Jehlen has established herself as a successful head coach after 24 seasons as the head coach at Monroe Community College. She has recorded more than 500 career victories, has been selected as the Region III Coach of the Year five times and led the Tribunes to the 2015 Regional Championship and a fourth-place finish at the NJCAA National Tournament. The 1999 graduate of the University of Pittsburgh played volleyball for the Panthers and earned a degree in psychology. The graduate of Rush-Henrietta HS was a standout setter for Pitt and led the team with 1,024 assists in 1997 and was a two-time Big East All-Academic team selection. At MCC, Jehlen earned her 400th career win in 2015 and surpassed the 500-career win plateau in 2021.  

Cal Wickens retired as head coach on the men's volleyball program after the 2025 season, following 21 seasons behind the benches leading the way. He moved into a volunteer assistant coaching role beginning in the 2025-26 year. In his final season in 2025, Nazareth finished ranked 13th nationally after going 19-11, and fell to No. 1 NYU in the UVC Semfinals.   For his career, Wickens had more the 800 wins between the men's and women's volleyball programs at Nazareth. On the men's side he went 436-189 (.698 win percentage). On the women's side, he was 407-273, a .599 win percentage.   In 2024, Wickens' 20 wins in a season for the 12th time in his career. He stepped down as the Nazareth women’s head coach after the 2022 season. Wickens started the men's volleyball program at Nazareth in 2005 and quickly established the Golden Flyers as one of the top teams in Division III. They proved that wholeheartedly in 2011 by hosting and winning the Molten Division III national championship. Four Nazareth players earned All-American honors and Wickens was chosen Division III Coach of the Year as the Golden Flyers went 31-3 overall. In 2023, Nazareth won 20 matches and Wickens' son Owen earned Empire Player of the Year and Seth Terzo was Defensive Player of the Year. Wickens and Terzo each earned all All-America honors from the AVCA. The team also boasted nine players on the UVC All-Academic team including a pair of National Academic awards. In 2024, Nazareth went 20-10, and advanced to the UVC semifinals. Wicken's son repeated as Empire 8 Player of the Year, in addition to being named an AVCA First Team All-American. In addition, Owen led the nation in aces per set and .0964 after tallying 81 on the season which was also a school record. Under Wickens, Nazareth had deep post-season runs in 2012, 2013 and 2015 with records of 27-9, 36-2 and 28-7 respectively. The Golden Flyers were represented in three of the first four NCAA Division III Tournaments (in 2012, 2013 and 2015) and lost in the finals in 2013 in a season that featured a 31-match winning streak. Wickens was named Division III Coach of the Year for the second time in three seasons. They reached the NCAAs again in 2015 and advanced to the national semifinals. Wickens' 20-year men's coaching record of 417-178 (.701) includes a 71-45 record in United Volleyball Conference matches with conference titles in 2011, 2012 and 2013. Nazareth first ascended to No. 1 in the Division III rankings in 2008 and has hovered among the nation's elite ever since. In 2009, Nazareth finished 28-5 overall and reached the finals of the North East Collegiate Volleyball Association Tournament. Wickens was recognized as the NECVA West Coach of the Year in 2007 and 2009 as well as United Volleyball Conference Coach of the Year in 2011 and 2013. In 2010, after a somewhat lackluster regular season, Wickens helped Nazareth become a surprise winner of the NECVA Tournament as the No. 15 seed in the 16-team event. The Golden Flyers recorded four straight upset wins to win the title and gain their first-ever berth in the Molten Division III Tournament. Wickens took over the Nazareth women's program prior to the 2003 season and promptly guided the Golden Flyers to the Empire 8 Conference title as well as their fourth straight trip to the NCAA Division III Tournament. A native of Santa Monica, Calif., Wickens started the Rochester Volleyball Club in 1979. The club includes the Volley FX girls' team and the Pace Bootlegger boys' team. The boys' team won the 18-and-under AAU National Championship in 1990 and has been national runner-up six other times. The team also captured the USA Men's National Championship in 2000. Wickens also has coached at numerous camps and clinics and served for 10 years as try-out coach for the USA High Performance/Youth National Team. Wickens has an Associates in Occupational Studies degree from the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, N.Y.

Katie Nicholas was named an assistant coach with the women’s volleyball team in 2023 prior to the start of the fall season. The veteran coach in the Rochester area was a four-year starter at Rush-Henrietta and led the team to an amazing 92-0 record over the four seasons. After high school, Nicholas went on to a full scholarship to play at the University of Buffalo and received several scholar-athlete accolades while earning a degree in Early Childhood Development. Nicholas returned to Rochester to pursue a master’s degree in education from Nazareth. The return to Rochester also was a start to her coaching career as she joined the staff at Monroe Community College and served two stints totaling 12 years with the Tribunes. In addition, she also coached with VolleyFX for eight years with the 12-18 year age groups and was the club director to oversee all operations for the 22 teams and more than 200 athletes for four years. She currently works for Pellucid Travel and organizes travel for sports teams at the club and college level.