University of Tennessee - Chattanooga Women's Volleyball

Darin was named Chattanooga's first Head Coach for the newly-established Beach Volleyball program in July of 2019. As the head of UTC’s Beach Volleyball program, Van Horn has led the Mocs program to top three finishes in Ohio Valley Conference regular season play in each of the first seven full seasons as an NCAA Division I sponsored sport, including helping the Mocs three-peat as Ohio Valley Conference Regular Season and Tournament Champions in the team's 2024, 2025, and 2026 seasons. Subsequently, Van Horn and the rest of the UTC squad would go on to play in the NCAA Beach Volleyball Championships hosted in Gulf Shores, Alabama in those three seasons. The team has attended the prestigious tournament now in three of the program's seven years of existence. Van Horn led the Sandy Mocs to a 24-5 record in 2026, with the 24 wins being the second most in program history. This was highlighted by a 14-match winning streak, which was the longest in program history, and for a few hours, the longest active winning streak in the country. Additionally, UTC went 10-0 in OVC play on its way to a league Championship. Come Tournament time, the Sand Mocs defeated Morehead State and Lindenwood (2x) to take home the trophy. The Tournament Championship marked the third in program history, more than any other OVC team. Additionally, with a 5-0 win over Ottawa (Kan.) on April 3, Van Horn surpassed 100 wins for his career. After the conclusion of the regular season, the OVC rewarded all 10 UTC starters with All-Conference status. Those 10 starters also earned AVCA Top Flight recognition, as the Sandy Mocs were just one of two schools in NCAA D1 to achieve this. Chattanooga's No. 1 pair of McKenna Faychak and Maddie Lecik were named OVC Pair of the Year, while Faychak earned Player of the Year honors. Lastly, Van Horn, his wife Juliana, and his Graduate Assistant Paige Gallentine, were named OVC Staff of the Year.  The program's 2025 season under Van Horn proved to be the team's most historic seasons to date, as the Sandy Mocs toppled numerous program-bests over the course of the year. Posting a program-best 26-6 record, the Mocs finished undefeated in Ohio Valley Conference action, becoming just the second team in OVC history to ever do so at the time, en route to capturing the outright OVC Regular Season Title. Along the way, the Mocs would notch a program record total of 17 sweep wins, the second-most by any OVC team in a single season in conference history. UTC proceeded to go back-to-back as Ohio Valley Conference Tournament Champions, picking up three-straight victories over the course of the weekend before hoisting the championship trophy following a 3-2 victory over UT Martin in the Title Match. The Mocs were also able to pick up a plethora of postseason accolades from the conference, with the team bringing in 13 honors from the OVC including Neva Clark being named a three-time OVC Player of the Year, Clark and Corina Vale going back-to-back as OVC Pair of the Year, as well as Van Horn and his wife Juliana becoming the first-ever three-time OVC Staff of the Year award winners. All five of Chattanooga's starting pairs would receive spots on either the All-OVC First Team or All-OVC Second Team for their efforts on the year. It marks the first time in conference history that a team's entire starting lineup received all-conference recognition. Additionally, Van Horn helped guide four of his five starting pairs to AVCA Top Flight status on the year. Going into the 2025 season, the program had only ever had one other AVCA Top Flight pair in the previous five seasons COMBINED. Under Van Horn the 2024 Mocs team ultimately saw a total of 14 postseason honors come the way of UTC from the Ohio Valley Conference, including Chattanooga becoming the first team in OVC history to sweep all four major awards of Player of the Year, Pair of the Year, Freshman of the Year and Staff of the Year in a single season. Van Horn also would coach a pair of Mocs to earn AVCA Top Flight honors, yet another first in the Chattanooga Beach Volleyball record books. It was this season that Chattanooga won its first OVC Regular Season and Tournament Championships with a 19-10 record and 9-1 mark in OVC play.  Following the 2023 campaign, Van Horn led the team to a program best 19 wins after finishing the season 19-15 overall while earning a spot in the OVC Tournament Semifinals as the No. 2 seed in the event. Van Horn helped guide sophomore Neva Clark to the 2023 Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Year honor to cap off a total of four All-OVC selections. Clark and partner Joy Courtright were tabbed to the All-OVC First Team while McKenna Faychak and Maddie Lecik earned spots on the All-OVC Second Team and OVC All-Freshman squad following the season. In 2022, Van Horn led the Mocs to a 17-14 overall record as the team earned the three seed in the Ohio Valley Conference tournament and fell just two points shy of making the league's championship match. He was also awarded the AVCA 30-Under-Thirty Award in April of 2022. Darin and assistant coach Juliana Van Horn were tabbed the OVC Co-Coaching Staff of the Year in 2021 after leading the team to an 8-11 overall mark and a 7-3 tally inside league play during its first full season as a program.  Darin earned his degree in Kinesiology from Penn State in 2013. Van Horn also served as Assistant Coach for UTC’s indoor volleyball program, a position he held from 2015-2024. He currently resides in Chattanooga, Tenn., with his wife Juliana Van Horn and their children Bronko and Stetson. DARIN VAN HORN BEACH VOLLEYBALL HEAD COACHING RECORD Year School Overall Conf. Place Postseason 2020 Chattanooga 0-3* 0-0 -- *Season canceled due to COVID-19 2021 Chattanooga 8-11 7-3 2nd OVC Staff of the Year 2022 Chattanooga 17-14 5-3 3rd 2023 Chattanooga 19-15 7-3 2nd 2024 Chattanooga 19-10 9-1 1st OVC Regular Season Co-Champs OVC Tournament Champs NCAA Tournament Appearance OVC Staff of the Year 2025 Chattanooga 26-6 10-0 1st OVC Regular Season Champs OVC Tournament Champs NCAA Tournament Appearance OVC Staff of the Year 2026 Chattanooga 24-5 10-0 1st OVC Regular Season Champs OVC Tournament Champs NCAA Tournament Appearance OVC Staff of the Year Totals 7 Years 113-64 (.638) 48-10 (.823)

Julie Torbett Thomas was named as the indoor volleyball program’s seventh head coach on Jan. 4, 2022. Torbett Thomas created instant success in her first season as the Chattanooga bench boss, leading the team to a 17-16 overall record (10-6 SoCon) and an appearance in the Southern Conference semifinals for the first time since 2016. The 17-16 season in 2022 was the first winning season for the program since 2016 and also provided the most wins in a season for the program in a head coach's first season. She helped direct the development of All-Southern Conference First Team selection Natalie Tyson (outside hitter) and Second Team honoree Paige Gallentine (libero). 2023 saw continued success for the Mocs, with the program stringing together its second consecutive winning season under Torbett Thomas with a 19-14 record on the year alongside a 6-10 SoCon record. It was in that same season that the Mocs opened the year with an 8-1 record, marking the best start to a season in program history. UTC would once again return to the Southern Conference Tournament Semifinals under Torbett Thomas in 2023 following an upset of No. 2 seeded Mercer in the SoCon Quarterfinals. Torbett Thomas would also reach a major career milestone on the year, earning her 500th career head coaching victory in her 30th season of coaching collegiate volleyball. The season would conclude with the duo of Morgan Romano (outside hitter) and Paige Gallentine (libero) both earning spots on the All-Southern Conference Second Team. Setter Elaine Redman also set the program record for SoCon Player of the Week awards won in a single season, taking home five SoCon Setter of the Week honors in 2023. Torbett Thomas then led Chattanooga volleyball to a 17-15 record for the team's 2024 campaign, marking the program's third-straight season with a winning record since she took over the program. The Mocs would also finish with a 7-9 SoCon record, which gave UTC the No. 7 seed for the 2024 SoCon Tournament. The 2024 season ended with Torbett Thomas coaching three of her players to All-SoCon honors on the year. Chard'e Vanzandt became the first Moc since 2022 to receive First Team All-SoCon honors for her efforts on the year, while Paige Gallentine became the program's all-time digs leader for the modern scoring era in a season that saw her named to the All-SoCon Second Team. Kynli Kirkendoll also received a place on the All-SoCon Freshman Team, becoming just the seventh freshman in program history and first since 2018 to be named to the team. In the 2025 season, Torbett Thomas's team finished 16-13 and 10-6 in the SoCon to place tied third in the league. 10 wins in league play tied the 2022 season for most conference wins in a season under Torbett Thomas. It's also her fourth winning season in a row to begin her tenure in Chattanooga. The Mocs won three consecutive conference matches to end the regular season and earn the No. 4 seed in the SoCon Tournament.  During the 2025 season, the Mocs played inside McKenzie Arena for the first time ever during the Chattanooga Classic. At this tournament, the program's attendance record was broken with 2,165 fans present to watch the Mocs take on Alabama.  Senior Outside Hitter Sydney Jackwin and Freshman Middle Blocker Jordin Glass received All-SoCon honors after the season concluded. Jackwin was named to the First Team after leading the Mocs and ranking fourth in the league in kills with 384. She also tallied 314 digs on the year, which was second on the team only behind Chattanooga's libero, Caiti Barthel, who led the league in digs with 548. Glass was named to the Freshman Team, marking the second year in a row a Moc has earned this distinction. In her first year in the Scenic City, Glass accounted for 88 total blocks, which was second highest on the team and ninth in the SoCon. Additionally, Glass contributed 133 kills on the other side of the net.  Torbett Thomas came to Chattanooga after two years as the head coach at Indiana University of Pennsylvania. Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, she only coached one season in those two years after the 2020 season was cancelled. In her last season, she guided the Crimson Hawks to an 18-14 overall record. In 31 seasons as a head coach, Torbett Thomas holds a 521-449 record with 29 years of experience at Division I programs. Prior to IUP, she spent seven years at East Carolina, where she won 109 games, the most in program history. ECU recorded 10+ wins in all seven of Torbett Thomas’s seasons at the helm of the Pirates. It marked the first time the program had seven-straight 10-win seasons since 1989-1995. Her 69 wins throughout the last four years were the best four-year stretch for the program since winning the same number from 1979-82. In 2017, the Pirates went 22-11 and 13-7 in the American Athletic Conference (AAC) and finished fourth in the league standings. ECU was picked to finish 11th in the preseason coaches’ poll that year. The 22 wins were the most for the team since 1982, and the team clinched the first 20-win season since 2005. Before her time in Greenville, N.C., she spent two years at Winthrop where she led the Eagles to 34 victories and a 20-8 mark in Big South Conference action. In her first season, Winthrop won a share of the Big South regular season championship, the first for the program since 2007. Of her 28 seasons prior to UTC, she spent 17 at UNC Asheville from 1994-2010. At the helm of the Bulldogs program, she garnered 304 victories and two Big South regular season titles. Her two titles came in 2002 and ’09 with a 26-8 and 25-10 records, respectively. The Bulldogs also had a 25-win season in 2005 and back-to-back 20-win seasons in 1995 and 96. Torbett Thomas was a two-time Big South Conference Coach of the Year in 2002 and ‘09 after the regular season championships. Under her leadership, UNC Asheville reached a No. 10 ranking in the South Region and won 20-plus matches five times. She also served as the Bulldogs’ Senior Woman Administrator. Throughout her 30 years as a head coach, Torbett Thomas has coached 56 all-conference selections, including 23 all-conference first-team honorees. She has coached a Player of the Year, Freshman of the Year and Scholar-Athlete of the Year. In addition to her team’s accolades on the court, Torbett Thomas also ensures her student-athletes excel in the classroom. She has coached 18 Academic All-Big South Selections and several of her teams have been presented the AVCA (American Volleyball Coaches Association) Academic Team Award which is given to programs with a cumulative GPA of 3.3 or higher. Torbett Thomas played at Penn State University, where she was a middle back and defensive specialist. She earned a degree in Exercise and Sport Science after playing for legendary Head Coach Russ Rose. Torbett Thomas currently resides in Chattanooga, Tenn., with her spouse Kelvin Thomas. Her children include Nathanael Torbett (31), Kianna Thomas (30), Niko Thomas (28), Colby Torbett (27) and Tristan Torbett (25). TORBETT HEAD COACHING RECORDS YEAR SCHOOL RECORD WIN % NOTES 1994 UNC Asheville 12-23 .343 1995 UNC Asheville 24-11 .686 1996 UNC Asheville 21-16 .568 1997 UNC Asheville 16-17 .485 1998 UNC Asheville 18-13 .581 1999 UNC Asheville 16-17 .485 2000 UNC Asheville 13-21 .382 2001 UNC Asheville 7-21 .250 2002 UNC Asheville 26-8 .765 Big South Regular Season Champs Big South Coach of the Year 2003 UNC Asheville 18-10 .643 2004 UNC Asheville 19-17 .528 2005 UNC Asheville 25-7 .781 2006 UNC Asheville 15-18 .455 2007 UNC Asheville 12-22 .353 2008 UNC Asheville 18-14 .563 2009 UNC Asheville 25-10 .714 Big South Regular Season Champs Big South Coach of the Year 2010 UNC Asheville 19-12 .613 2011 Winthrop 20-8 .714 Co-Big South Regular Season Champs 2012 Winthrop 14-16 .467 2013 East Carolina 13-19 .406 2014 East Carolina 15-16 .484 2015 East Carolina 12-19 .387 2016 East Carolina 15-15 .500 2017 East Carolina 22-11 .667 Most wins for ECU since 1982 2018 East Carolina 13-16 .448 2019 East Carolina 19-11 .633 2020 Indiana (PA) 3-2 .600 2021 Indiana (PA) 18-14 .563 2022 Chattanooga 17-16 .515 SoCon Semifinals (first since '16) 2023 Chattanooga 19-14 .576 SoCon Semifinals 2024 Chattanooga 17-15 .531 2025 Chattanooga 16-13 .551 Tied third finish in SoCon Standings 32 Seasons Overall Record 537-462 .538 4 Seasons Chattanooga 69-58 .543 17 Seasons UNC Asheville 304-257 .542 Most wins in program history 7 Seasons East Carolina 109-107 .505 Most wins in program history 2 Seasons Indiana (PA) 21-16 .568 2 Seasons Winthrop 34-24 .586  

Juliana Van Horn, previously Juliana Yensho, joined the Chattanooga Volleyball family in the spring of 2019 as a Volunteer Assistant, Director of Operations and Team Sports Psychology Consultant. Van Horn serves as a volunteer coach for the beach team under her husband, Darin. She assisted in the start of the program in 2020 and after the team's first full season, her and Darin received the Ohio Valley Conference Co-Conference Coaching Staff of the Year honors after leading the team to a second-place finish.  The 2024 season for beach volleyball was a major one for UTC, as the Mocs would finish as OVC Regular Season and OVC Tournament Champions, both firsts in Chattanooga Beach Volleyball history. The Van Horn's were ultimately awarded with OVC Staff of the Year honors for the second time of their careers following the historic season, before going on to play in the 2024 NCAA Beach Volleyball Championships. The program's 2025 season proved to be one of the team's most historic seasons to date, as the Sandy Mocs toppled numerous program-bests over the course of the year. Posting a program-best 26-6 record, the Mocs finished undefeated in Ohio Valley Conference action, becoming just the second team in OVC history to ever do so, en route to capturing the outright OVC Regular Season title. Along the way, the Mocs would notch a program record total of 17 sweep wins, the second-most by any OVC team in a single season in conference history. UTC proceeded to go back-to-back as OVC Tournament champions, picking up three-straight victories over the course of the weekend before hoisting the championship trophy following a 3-2 victory over UT Martin in the title match. The Mocs were also able to pick up a plethora of postseason accolades from the conference, with the team bringing in 13 honors from the OVC including Neva Clark being named a three-time OVC Player of the Year, Clark and Corina Vale going back-to-back as OVC Pair of the Year, as well as the Van Horns becoming the first-ever three-time OVC Staff of the Year award winners. All five of Chattanooga's starting pairs would receive spots on either the All-OVC First Team or All-OVC Second Team for their efforts on the year. It marks the first time in conference history that a team's entire starting lineup received all-conference recognition. Additionally, Van Horn helped guide four of her five starting pairs to AVCA Top Flight status on the year. Going into the 2025 season, the program had only ever had one other AVCA Top Flight pair in the previous five seasons COMBINED. Van Horn helped lead the Sandy Mocs to a 24-5 record in 2026, with the 24 wins being the second most in program history. This was highlighted by a 14-match winning streak, which was the longest in program history, and for a few hours, the longest active winning streak in the country. Additionally, UTC went 10-0 in OVC play on its way to a league Championship. Come Tournament time, the Sand Mocs defeated Morehead State and Lindenwood (2x) to take home the trophy. The Tournament Championship marked the third in program history, more than any other OVC team. This led to UTC earning its third consecutive bid to the NCAA Tournament in Gulf Shores, Alabama. After the conclusion of the regular season, the OVC rewarded all 10 UTC starters with All-Conference status. Those 10 starters also earned AVCA Top Flight recognition, as the Sandy Mocs were just one of two schools in NCAA D1 to achieve this. Chattanooga's No. 1 pair of McKenna Faychak and Maddie Lecik were named OVC Pair of the Year, while Faychak earned Player of the Year honors. Lastly, Darin, Juliana, and Graduate Assistant Paige Gallentine were named Staff of the Year.  Van Horn earned her bachelor's of arts in Psychology from Christopher Newport University in 2010 and went on to earn two master's degrees from Regent University in 2015. While at CNU, she played volleyball under Lindsay Birch from 2006-07 and competed for the Track and Field team from 2008-10 and earned all-conference accolades each year.  Van Horn also practices as a Licensed Professional Mental Health Counselor and Sports Psychology Consultant in Chattanooga. Juliana and her husband Darin Van Horn reside in Chattanooga with their son, Bronko, and their daughter, Stetson.

Kaleigh Fitzgerald joined the Chattanooga volleyball program in July of 2025, being added into the role of Assistant Coach for the Mocs ahead of the 2025 regular season. In Fitzgerald's first season with the Mocs, they went 16-13 and 10-6 in league play to finish tied third in the SoCon. 10 conference wins marks the most since the 2022 season for the Mocs. Fitzgerald coached two All-SoCon players, led by First Team selection Sydney Jackwin, who tallied 384 kills and 314 digs on the year. Jordin Glass was picked to the Freshman Team after accounting for 88 total blocks and 133 kills for the season.  Prior to joining the Mocs staff, Fitzgerald resided in Atlanta, Georgia, where she pursued her M.S. in Sports Administration from Georgia State University. While she juggled her graduate schooling, Fitzgerald also held the position of Sponsorship Activation Coordinator with the Atlanta Vibe of the Pro Volleyball Federation for nearly a year. It was in this role that Fitzgerald helped to execute sponsor agreements as well as manage branding for the team. Fitzgerald spent a good portion of 2023 down in Florida, where she served as a summer volleyball coach for IMG Academy. While there, Fitzgerald would lead weekly training sessions with athletes aged 12-17, and she was eventually promoted to head coach of the program at the mid-season mark. Immediately following this time Fitzgerald would go on to serve as Gameday Operations Assistant at Auburn University at Montgomery. Fitzgerald's coaching career also includes stints as a camp coach for the University of Wisconsin - Oshkosh and for SMASH Volleyball Club in Weston, Massachusetts. A defensive specialist/libero in her playing days, Fitzgerald was a five-year letterwinner in indoor volleyball having bounced around to four different universities over the course of her career. Fitzgerald would get her start in college volleyball at the University of Hartford in the Spring of 2021, and it was during the 2022 season that she would make her way to UAlbany as a transfer. Fitzgerald would then spend the 2023 season at Auburn University at Montgomery before wrapping up her playing career in 2024 at Georgia State. As a player, Fitzgerald raked in countless honors and awards including being named the 2023 Gulf South Conference Libero of the Year while at AUM. Her college career would finish with Fitzgerald having amassed 1,146 career digs (3.23 digs/set) and 129 career aces (0.36 aces/set). Some of her other achievements include being a Second Team AVCA All-South Region honoree, a First Team All-GSC selection and the Georgia State Female Sport MVP for 2025. Over the course of her playing career Fitzgerald was also a standout in the classroom, receiving numerous conference and university honor roll distinctions. Fitzgerald is a 2023 graduate from the University of Albany - SUNY, where she received her B.A. in Communications alongside a minor in Leadership. She went on to earn her M.S. in Sports Administration from Georgia State University in May of 2025. Fitzgerald originally hails from Waukesha, Wisconsin, where she was a part of a very volleyball-centered family as her mother and aunt each played collegiate volleyball at George Washington University and the University of Wisconsin, respectively.