Macalester alumna Sarah Graves ’04 has been named the new head coach of the volleyball team. Former coach Annie Doman has stepped down to take a position in the Career Development Center after serving as head of the program for seven seasons. Her overall record in that time was 70-126, including 9-18 in her final season and 1-10 in conference play. First-year volleyball player Deborah Pickford ’20 said, “We are all sad to see Annie leave but we know she’s going to be close by.”

Graves was a standout volleyball player during her tenure at Macalester. She was a three-time captain and earned all-MIAC honors in 2001. She returns to Macalester after two years at Denison University in Ohio, where she had a 25-31 record. Before that she spent six years as an assistant coach for Macalester Volleyball. Graves has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications and Media Studies from Macalester, and a Master’s in Communication from the University of Delaware. Graves says she is “energized at the thought of bringing my passion and experience back to Macalester volleyball…” and, according to the Macalester Athletics web page, “motivated to move this program and its student-athletes forward to achieve at a higher level.”

The team also seems very excited for Coach Graves to start. Pickford said that she’s “super excited about Sarah and her past experiences with Macalester.” Pickford can vouch for her character as well: “She’s super driven and passionate and I think that she’s going to give our team all the tools and training necessary to be a competitive force in and outside of the MIAC.” Graves will return four seniors and her first official day will be March 10.