University of California Merced Men's Volleyball

University of California, Merced Executive Director of Recreation & Athletics David Dunham announced on June 12, 2025 that Chris Carter has been named the third head men's volleyball coach in program history. "We are excited to have Chris join our program," Dunham said. "He brings great experience that will continue to build upon the solid foundation Coach Ai Prachumsri built with our men's volleyball program. I look forward to working with him as we transition into NCAA Division II." Carter has been coaching collegiately across various levels since 2021 including assistant coaching stops at UAlbany, Springfield College, and Westcliff University. "It's a great day to be a Bobcat! I want to thank David Dunham, Payton Williams, Ai Prachumsri and the entire UC Merced community for their faith in me to lead the men's volleyball program into a bright future in NCAA Division II," Carter said.  "From the first step on campus, I could feel the excitement and passion from everyone I interacted with about the growth of the school and community," Carter continued. "Between that and a commitment to excellence and continued investment in the athletic department, I knew that Merced is the place to be. I am excited to get to work to continue building a championship-level culture of excellence at UC Merced that can be a powerhouse for years to come and something that student-athletes, spectators, and community members want to be a part of." This past season with NCAA Division I UAlbany women's volleyball, Carter was a part of the 2024 America East Coaching Staff of the Year. UAlbany qualified for the America East Tournament for the first time since 2021 and upset top-seeded Binghamton to advance to the conference championship match. Carter was key in making improvements to the Danes defense that most notably finished second in the America East in digs per set, a huge improvement from the year prior. UAlbany also had a five-win improvement with Carter on staff. Carter worked with the America East Rookie of the Year Maria Olga Siapani. Prior to UAlbany, Carter served in different capacities with NCAA Division III Springfield College. Carter was a graduate assistant and recruiting coordinator for Springfield men's volleyball serving under 11X national champion and 5X AVCA Division III National Coach of the Year Charlie Sullivan. Carter was on the sidelines for a pair of NCAA Tournament appearances (2023-24) and Springfield was nationally-ranked top ten the majority of weeks with Carter on staff. He was key in helping guide a Springfield offense that finished top five nationally in hitting percentage back-to-back years. Also of note, the 2023 squad led the country in service aces per set. Dylan Mulvaney (2023) and Sam Levinson (2024) earned AVCA National Newcomer of the Year honors. With the Springfield duo and UAlbany's Siapani, Carter has proven to lead freshman to success having three freshman in as many seasons win major awards. Carter also coached five AVCA All-Americans for the 2023 & 2024 teams that played to an overall record of 42-12. Carter's first collegiate job was assistant coach and recruiting coordinator for Westcliff University in 2021 and into the spring of 2022. Prior to college coaching, Carter led University High School in Irvine, Calif., to consecutive CIF playoff appearances and led varying age groups for Pulse Athletics Volleyball Club in Orange County. A California native, Carter earned his bachelor's degree in political science from Cal State Fullerton in 2022 and completed his master's degree in athletic leadership from Springfield College in 2024.

Head coach Ai Prachumsri is in his tenth season leading the UC Merced women’s volleyball program. Under Prachumsri, the Bobcats won the 2020 & 2024 California Pacific Conference Tournament Championship and have qualified for the conference tournament eight times. The Bobcats also won the Cal Pac Regular Season Championship in 2024 and Prachumsri was named the Cal Pac Coach of the Year. The most familiar face of UC Merced volleyball, Prachumsri is also the longest tenured coach in the California Pacific Conference and has tallied 114 career wins. His overall record stands at 114-119, while his Cal Pac record is 92-52. Prachumsri has coached some of the best players in program history, including the duo of Dominique Andrews and Jaysonna Johnson who were the first two NAIA honorable mention All-Americans in program history. Prachumsri had the pleasure of coaching the two all four years (2016-19) and they combined for seven All-Cal Pac honors and ten Cal Pac Player of the Week awards. In 2024, Sera Riley was named the Cal Pac Player of the Year and and a NAIA Third Team All-American. In total, Prachumsri has mentored 18 All-Cal Pac selections, 16 Cal Pac honorable mentions and his players have been named Cal Pac Player of the Week 51 times. In six of the last nine years, Prachumsri and the Bobcats have finished higher in the final Cal Pac standings than projected in the Preseason Conference Group Poll. Prachsumsri has also taken academics to heart with his team and women’s volleyball has held the department's top cumulative GPA five of the last seven years. Additionally, he has mentored 42 Chancellor’s List honorees, 40 Daktronics-NAIA Scholar-Athletes and his student-athletes Rachael Schafer, Madison Mitchell, and Haley Branley have been named UC Merced's Female Intercollegiate Scholar Athlete of the Year. In the 2023 campaign, UC Merced advanced to the Cal Pac Semifinals after playing to a 12-8 record in league play and beating Park Gilbert in the opening round. The Bobcats took two of three matches from Park throughout the year, and swept the season series with La Sierra, Antelope Valley, Providence Christian, Pacific Union, and Simpson. Overall, the Bobcats finished 14-19. Statistically, Prachumsri’s squad set program-records with 1528 kills, 1446 assists, 239 service aces, and 2284 digs. The Bobcats digs total ranked eighth in the NAIA, while the 239 aces ranked 19th. He mentored libero Destiny Lei Ramilo to break the program’s single-season digs record with 543 digs and he coached Alexa Ultreras to become the first player in program history with 330+ kills and 330+ digs in the same season. Both Lei Ramilo and Ultreras earned All-Cal Pac Second Team honors. A year prior in 2022, the Bobcats finished 12-15 overall and 9-11 in Cal Pac play. The Bobcats 12 total wins were tied for the second highest win total under Prachumsri and it marked the second 12+ win season in a row and third in the last four years. The year started with a season-opening win over LC State College and sweep over West Coast Baptist College in the home opener. Then, the Bobcats won their Cal Pac opener in five sets over Providence Christian College. Other big wins throughout the season include knocking off Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University for the first time since 2016 and completing a reverse sweep over Fresno Pacific University for the Bobcats first ever win over a NCAA Division II opponent. At the time of the five-set win, Fresno Pacific was in second-place in the PacWest Conference and 9-2 in their previous eleven games. From an individual standpoint, Olanasaze Ojo was named All-Cal Pac Second Team. Ojo and Serena Choi also earned Cal Pac Player of the Week honors during the season. Choi became the first player in program history with a triple-double and finished with three on the year. The 2021 season saw the Bobcats win twelve of 18 California Pacific Conference matches and earn a program-record nine sweeps against league foes. Prachumsri’s squad earned three straight sweeps October 28-30. The Bobcats regular season success landed them a spot in the Cal Pac Tournament Quarterfinals, the sixth straight postseason appearance under Prachumsri. Also of note, the Bobcats went 7-2 at home in Cal Pac play. Prachumsri coached three postseason honorees in All-Cal Pac Second Team selection Olivia Harden and honorable mentions Lexus Lagumbay and Edwena Wong. Lagumbay featured one of the best serves in the country and her 0.55 service aces per set ranked 17th in the NAIA. Her 48 total service aces broke the program’s single-season record. As a team, the Bobcats ranked top five in the Cal Pac in blocks and service aces per set, while also ranking in the top half in hitting percentage and digs per set. The Bobcats first ever conference championship win came 3-1 over University of Saint Katherine on April 6, 2021. The trophy also meant the Bobcats advanced to their first ever National Championship Opening Round. Overall, the Bobcats went 7-7 in the Spring of 2021 and had two separate three-match winning streaks. Prachumsri’s championship winning team consisted of just one senior which was starting libero Madison Mayoralgo. Welcoming in a squadron of new talent, the underclassman for the youngest team in program history accounted for 82% of the assists, 80% of the blocks, 60% of the service aces and 57% of the kills. Prachumsri’s top front row players Olivia Harden and Olanasaze Ojo earned All-Cal Pac Second Team honors and later were voted AVCA Southwest Region Honorable Mentions. Prachumsri also mentored assistant coach Caroline Mack into being named both the Cal Pac Assistant Coach of the Year and the AVCA Southwest Region Assistant Coach of the Year. Statistically, the Bobcats finished second in the Cal Pac with 1.8 blocks per set, third with a .184 hitting percentage and top five in the conference in assists per set and service aces per set. The 2019 campaign saw the Bobcats win a program record 16 games overall and go 12-4 in conference play, earning a sixth straight berth to the California Pacific Conference Championships and entering as the No. 2 seed. The season got off to a great start as the Bobcats started off with a season opening win for the first time since 2015 and just a day later the Bobcats earned their first ever Top 25 win as they defeated #15 The Master’s University in five sets. The Bobcats had two different five-match winning streaks late in the season and finished with ten wins in their final 12 matches. Prachumsri’s team also won a program-record six straight road matches from October 12-November 9. Prior to that streak, the Bobcats had never won six true road matches in any previous season. Stellar play at the net was the name of the game for the Bobcats in 2019 as they recorded a program record 1,208 kills and 99 solo blocks. The Bobcats also led the Cal Pac with 2.2 blocks/set for the fourth year in a row. At the annual postseason banquet, Andrews and Johnson earned All-Cal Pac First Team honors while Emily Romo and Madison Mitchell were named honorable mention. The following day, the quartet led the Bobcats to a five-set win over La Sierra in the Cal Pac semifinals and put the Bobcats in the championship game for the second time in the last three years. In 2018-19, the Bobcats were the conference’s number one blocking team for the third year in a row, checking in at 1.9 blocks per set. The strong blocking efforts parlayed with a fast-paced offensive attack carried the Bobcats down the stretch, winning seven of their final ten conference games to clinch a berth into the postseason. Overall, the Bobcats played to a 11-14 record, 9-7 in conference play. Under Prachumsri, Dominique Andrews became the program’s first ever All-American and broke the Bobcats single-season kills record with 354. Andrews, along with Cassandra Diaz and Jaysonna Johnson, earned All-California Pacific Conference recognition. Additionally, Prachumsri saw the rise of freshman Destiny Andersen and Lexus Kato-Lagumbay. Both players jumped into the program’s single-season Top 10 list, Andersen with 189 kills and Kato-Lagumbay with 219 digs. In 2017-18, Prachumsri led the team to a 10-15 overall record and 9-5 California Pacific Conference record. After a tough non-conference slate, Prachumsri's team fought their way back into postseason contention and ended the regular season with eight wins in their final eleven games. UC Merced entered their fourth straight conference tournament and took Embry-Riddle (AZ) to a fifth set in the Cal Pac Championship game. In addition to his coaching duties with the women’s team, Prachumsri was the head coach of the men's volleyball team for nine years from 2017-2025. His 2024 squad won the program's first Cal Pac Regular Season Championship before the 2025 squad made more history with a Cal Pac Tournament Championship. Also of note, Prachumsri was named the California Pacific Conference Coach of the Year in 2021 & 2025. Prachumsri is the winningest coach in program history with a 98-98 overall record. He has coached three AVCA NAIA Honorable Mentions in his time at the helm of the men’s volleyball team. Prior to his time as the head women’s volleyball coach, Prachumsri was the lead assistant for the program in 2015.  Additionally, Prachumsri was a member of the UC Merced men's volleyball coaching staff for two seasons (2014-15 & 2015-16). Prior to his time as a coach at UC Merced, Prachumsri was a student athlete on campus and graduated in 2014 with a degree in Bioengineering. As a student athlete at UC Merced, he competed as a member of the men's volleyball club team for three years and in 2013, as the program was elevated to the intercollegiate level, he competed as the starting libero for the inaugural squad. The 2013-14 Bobcat Award winner is currently third in program history with 1.92 digs per set. In the classroom, Prachumsri was one of the top students on campus and in the engineering department as he was honored on the Chancellor’s List all five years.  During his time on campus he also took on additional responsibilities as the Intramurals Student Coordinator and as a Student Athlete Learning Assistant, helping tutor his fellow student athletes. A native of Thailand, Prachumsri made Torrance, California his hometown at the age of 14.  Following in the youthful tradition of firsts for UC Merced, he is notably the first UC Merced alum to hold a collegiate head coaching position. Prachumsri completed a master’s degree in Kinesiology with an emphasis in strength and conditioning and orthopedic rehabilitation from AT Still University.

Ken Shaw joins UC Merced following a successful run as head boys and girls volleyball coach at Stone Ridge Christian High School. Across 26 combined seasons, including 19 with SRC girls volleyball, Shaw led the Knights to 448 wins and 26 playoff appearances. In 2018 & 2019, Shaw and SRC won back-to-back NORCAL CIF Division VI Girls Volleyball State Championships. Shaw was also named the Merced Sun-Star Female Volleyball Coach of the Year at the end of both seasons. Of many highlights with the boys team, Shaw led the Knights to three straight undefeated league seasons 2017-19. He was named the league’s coach of the year a combined 16 teams with the boys and girls teams. The Bobcats assistant coach is also involved in the beach game within the Central Valley, serving as the Director and Head of Operations at Knights Beach Courts and is also a beach volleyball coach at Triumph Volleyball Academy. Shaw earned a bachelor’s degree in education, kinesiology from Azusa Pacific University.