By Delaney Crawford
Hood Athletics has hired a new head women’s and men’s volleyball coach for the 2022-2023 season.
Katie Barnett becomes the second head volleyball coach that Hood has hired during the 2021-22 school year.
Former head coach, Kevin Russell, who was hired in August, abruptly left in the fall during with four games left to play in the season. Following his departure, the team’s assistant coach, Payton Belella, became the interim head coach.
Since the season ended, a committee of athletic department staff members was tasked with finding a permanent head coach. Out of the 26 applicants, Barnett was chosen for the job.
Barnett stepped into the athletic offices on Jan. 31 eager to get started and to take the next steps in her professional career.
“I think she’ll make a good fit here because she was formerly at Wilson which isn’t far, so the recruiting territory is the same and while she was primarily the women’s coach there, she also coached men’s volleyball for one season which gives her experience for both,” Assistant Director of Athletics Geoff Goyne said.
Barnett was the head volleyball coach at Wilson College for three years. In her first year there during the 2019-2020 season, she was the coach of both the men’s and women’s teams. The following season she switched to coaching just the women’s team.
While coaching at Wilson, she led the women’s team to its highest win total and a 7-2 record while in conference play. Barnett was also the senior woman administrator and director of operations for Wilson, which put her in charge of overseeing all aspects of game days for each varsity athletic program.
Men’s volleyball will be a new varsity sport at Hood in Spring 2023. Barnett said she is ready to lead that team and has already begun the recruiting process.
With women’s volleyball competing in the fall and the men’s in the spring, it is doable to coach both. When asked how she would juggle both teams, Barnett said, “By using great support from the athletic department and my assistant coaches.”
The Hood women’s volleyball team ended their 2021 season with a 4-19 record. The team pushed through the many obstacles that were presented throughout the season and are looking forward to a fresh start with a new coach.
“The team has a really great foundation; I want to continue the success they have already built upon and become a stronger force within the conference,” Barnett said. “I want my players to look back on their time at Hood with pride for what they have accomplished here.”
Be the first to comment