Check out Coach Nolan's Chalk Talk Feature!

Yamile Nolan was named as the head coach of the women’s volleyball program prior to the start of the 2010 season and has compiled a 85-68 (.556) record over five years as the Monks’ clipboard carrier. No coach in SJC volleyball history has notched more victories (57) during their first three seasons at the helm.

Under Nolan’s watch, the Monks have registered a 20-29 mark in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) play and advanced to the conference tournament in four of the last five seasons.

Recently:

The 2012 squad went 22-8 overall and 9-3 against GNAC opponents en route to capturing the #4 seed in the GNAC Tournament. Hosting a GNAC postseason contest for the first time in six seasons as a member of the conference, Saint Joseph’s hosted #5 Johnson & Wales University and suffered a 3-0 loss in the tourney quarterfinal.

Although the abrupt ending resulted in unrealized goals for the Monks, the 2012 campaign will go down as one of the very best in program history. The .733 winning percentage recorded by the 2012 team is the best rate ever recorded by an SJC volleyball team while the win tally is the most in 17 years. The 2012 Monks also shattered the program single-season records for kills (1,118), hitting percentage (.189), assists (1,012) and total blocks (186).

Following the completion of the 2012 campaign, multiple SJC players claimed All-GNAC honors for the first time, as senior Sarah Hawkes garnered First Team mention while senior setter Kiah Begley and freshman middle blocker Felicia Wachowiak were both listed on the Second Team.

Hawkes left the team owning a bevy of program records, including the career marks for kills (1,107), digs (1,229) and total blocks (261) while Begley is the all-time leader in assists (2,988) and ranked second all-time in digs (1,096) and third in service aces (230) when her NCAA career ended.

Wachowiak put forth a fantastic rookie campaign with 290 kills and broke the Monks’ single-season records for attack percentage (.318) and total blocks (95) as a freshman.

Past Seasons:

2011 was another solid season for the Monks, as Coach Nolan continued to raise the bar for the SJC volleyball team, which went 18-12 overall and 7-6 in GNAC play during her second season at the helm. Saint Joseph’s advanced to the GNAC Tournament for the second consecutive season after notching the most victories recorded by the team since the 1997 campaign.

Nolan's first season at the helm was a memorable one, as the Monks went 17-14 overall 5-7 in conference play en route to gaining the program's first GNAC Tournament berth in 2010. Sophomore Sarah Hawkes became the first SJC volleyball player to earn a postseason GNAC accolade when she garnered Third Team All-GNAC honors following the completion of the regular season.

Previously:

Nolan’s passion for the sport began while attending Bishop Montgomery High School in Torrance, California. She played two years for El Camino College under the guidance of Head Coach Sharkie Zartman where she went on to collect California Junior College Player of the Year and State Championship Tournament Most Valuable Player honors. Nolan eventually transferred to the University of California at Santa Barbara, where she received a full athletic scholarship and played under renowned Head Coach Kathy Gregory. While there, Nolan was named PCAA Player of the Week and established many team records, specifically in the areas of passing, digging and serving. UCSB advanced to the first round of the NCAA playoffs in each of Nolan's two years.

Nolan also played beach volleyball and earned her AAA beach rating in 1987. She continues to enjoy playing both indoor and beach volleyball.

Personal:

Coach Nolan moved to Maine in the summer of 1999. She has four children and is an elementary second grade teacher. Her husband is a native of Maine and teaches music.