UWA Volleyball Camps
John Schmidt was named the new head volleyball coach at the University of West Alabama on April 11, 2022.
A veteran in the collegiate volleyball ranks, Schmidt brings over 20 years of college coaching to West Alabama, including head coach and assistant coach experiences in NCAA Division I, NCAA Division II and NAIA. As a known technical trainer to the sport, he has coached volleyball student-athletes to over 80 postseason athletic honors and many more academically. During non-building seasons, his teams have finished either first or second in 11 of 13 conference seasons.
Schmidt is a proven winning volleyball coach with a remodeled approach to the game. A decade plus in the making, his student-first coaching philosophy centers around a three-dimensional concept accentuating positive and trusting relationships emphasizing the ‘Body’ (physical needs), ‘Mind’ (sports psychology) and ‘Spirit’ (heart).
This resurgence has equated to 11 winning seasons, multiple conference championships, NCAA DI and NAIA National Tournament appearance and athletes’ successes on and off the court include a 70 percent winning percentage in conference play, seven postseason appearances, runner-up finishes in 2021 KJCAA and NJCAA national rankings (twice in top 10 and as high as third).
Schmidt and his teams won the 2020-21 KJCAA Championship and the 2019 RSC Championship, while he took home Coach of the Year honors on the way to an NAIA National Tournament berth. He played a role in winning the 2015 OVC Championship which included an NCAA Tournament berth and was 2014 OVC Runner-up.
In five club seasons he has led various teams to a pair of national qualifier championships and four junior national berths.
Coaching stops for Schmidt include Seward County (Kan.) Community College, Brescia (Ky.) University and Belmont (Tenn.) University. He also has experience with the Willowbrook Volleyball Club and the Nebraska Volleyball Academy.
A stalwart in community outreach and volunteering opportunities, Schmidt has worked with the Special Olympics, Fellowship of Christian Athletes, as well as elementary outreach programs, leadership and student ministries and volleyball activities with youth groups.
He is a member of the American Volleyball Coaches Association and United States of America for Volleyball.
Schmidt earned with Bachelor of Arts from Texas State University in mass communications with a minor in exercise and sports science.
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John Schmidt was named the new head volleyball coach at the University of West Alabama on April 11, 2022.
A veteran in the collegiate volleyball ranks, Schmidt brings over 20 years of college coaching to West Alabama, including head coach and assistant coach experiences in NCAA Division I, NCAA Division II and NAIA. As a known technical trainer to the sport, he has coached volleyball student-athletes to over 80 postseason athletic honors and many more academically. During non-building seasons, his teams have finished either first or second in 11 of 13 conference seasons.
Schmidt is a proven winning volleyball coach with a remodeled approach to the game. A decade plus in the making, his student-first coaching philosophy centers around a three-dimensional concept accentuating positive and trusting relationships emphasizing the ‘Body’ (physical needs), ‘Mind’ (sports psychology) and ‘Spirit’ (heart).
This resurgence has equated to 11 winning seasons, multiple conference championships, NCAA DI and NAIA National Tournament appearance and athletes’ successes on and off the court include a 70 percent winning percentage in conference play, seven postseason appearances, runner-up finishes in 2021 KJCAA and NJCAA national rankings (twice in top 10 and as high as third).
Schmidt and his teams won the 2020-21 KJCAA Championship and the 2019 RSC Championship, while he took home Coach of the Year honors on the way to an NAIA National Tournament berth. He played a role in winning the 2015 OVC Championship which included an NCAA Tournament berth and was 2014 OVC Runner-up.
In five club seasons he has led various teams to a pair of national qualifier championships and four junior national berths.
Coaching stops for Schmidt include Seward County (Kan.) Community College, Brescia (Ky.) University and Belmont (Tenn.) University. He also has experience with the Willowbrook Volleyball Club and the Nebraska Volleyball Academy.
A stalwart in community outreach and volunteering opportunities, Schmidt has worked with the Special Olympics, Fellowship of Christian Athletes, as well as elementary outreach programs, leadership and student ministries and volleyball activities with youth groups.
He is a member of the American Volleyball Coaches Association and United States of America for Volleyball.
Schmidt earned with Bachelor of Arts from Texas State University in mass communications with a minor in exercise and sports science.
Jocelyn Mahayag enters her first season with the West Alabama volleyball program in 2024.
Most recently, Mahayag served as head varsity volleyball coach at the Emery/Weiner School in Houston, Texas. Away from the court, she also served as a middle school physical education teacher and assisted the athletic department for creating social media content.
Prior to her time in the Lone Star State, she spent the 2022 season as an assistant volleyball coach at Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, New Jersey. At the NCAA Division III institution, the program went 24-10 en route to the MAC Freedom Tournament Championship and a second round appearance at the NCAA Championships.
Working primarily with the defenders, she coached Bailey Axelrad to Defensive Player of the Year honors.
Her collegiate career included three stops to Truett McConnell University (Ga.), Georgia State University and the University of Mobile (Ala.). Playing in 128 matches (400 sets), she averaged nearly five digs a set with 1,981 in her career.
In her first season of college competition at NAIA Truett McConnell, she was a First Team All-Appalachian Athletic Conference with a nation-best 6.48 digs in 101 sets. She was also voted as the AAC Freshman of the Year.
After a season with Division I Georgia State, where she played in 54 sets, she returned to the NAIA ranks at Mobile for two seasons and was a two-time Southern States Athletic Conference First Team selection and an All-Region member by the American Volleyball Coaches Association.
In 2017, she was named to the SSAC All-Tournament Team as she was a part of the tournament championship and qualified for the NAIA Tournament.
Mahayag graduated from Mobile in 2019 with a bachelor’s degree in communications.
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100 US-11, Livingston, AL
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UWA Volleyball Camps
All camps are open to any and all applicants and are limited only by the number of slots available per camp and the age, grade level and/or gender of the participants.
Have some questions?
Check out some of our FAQs below
Do you offer refunds?
We do not offer refunds but we do offer a camp credit to a future camp. Camp credit will last 365 days from camp start date. PLEASE PROVIDE A WRITTEN REQUEST OF FOR YOUR CAMP CREDIT 7 DAYS PRIOR TO THE THE CAMP START.
Can I stay and watch my player?
Parents are encouraged to observe their child’s participation in camps, clinics and lessons. Coaches will be happy to answer any questions after the event is over regarding what we worked on at camp that day. For safety and liability reasons, at no time is a non-camper allowed on the playing surface.
Will lunch be provided?
Lunch WILL NOT be provided. So make sure to bring lunch with you, or go grab lunch during our lunch break!
What will campers need?
1. Water bottle
2. Appropriate attire – shorts/spandex
3. Knee pads
4. Tennis shoes