In his 15-year career as a volleyball head coach, Jonathan Wilson has won over 300 games, earned seven Atlantic Coast Conference titles, and made three Sweet Sixteen appearances in the National Collegiate Athletic Association tournament. And as recently as 2003, he led the Rice University Owls to a 19-win season.
But his biggest challenge yet may lie ahead in 2008 with his latest job in Morningside Heights.
Wilson will try to pull a winning season out of his bag of tricks when he takes over as head coach of the Columbia volleyball team, a program that is in dire need of a new direction and leadership.
He will become the fourth head coach the team has had in the past seven seasons. The previous three have combined to win just 17 games since 2001.
The frustrating results prompted five players to quit the team between seasons on two separate occasions. Wilson hopes to bring a sense of stability to the program, which he believes has a solid foundation upon which to work.
Wilson has his work cut out for him, coaching a team that lost 23 times last season and won just three games against Manhattan College, Quinnipiac University, and New Jersey Institute of Technology.
He can take his first step in the right direction by winning an Ivy League contest, a feat the Lions failed to accomplish at any point last season. The Lions were defeated in all 14 matches they played against their Ancient Eight opponents, contributing to a 19-game losing streak against their conference dating back to the fall of 2006.
Nine players return from last season including sophomores Martina Kajanova, Colleen McNutt, Katie Mitchell, and Sara Thompson, as well as juniors Lillian Guidry, Alex Marchyshyn, Elizabeth Shelly, and Ellie Thomas, who recorded 404 digs last season.
Joining them will be eight freshmen, including Cindy Chen, Marisa Cornejo, Megan Dillinger, Nicole Goldhaber, Monique Roberts, Megan Sweat, Allyson Werner, and Tabitha Wood.
Amalia Viti, the lone senior on this year's squad, averaged 3.48 kills per game in 2007.
Throughout her collegiate career, she has had to endure the disappointing tenures of former head coaches Monica Holmes and Brie Katz and the losing seasons they produced. Her experiences have given her the leadership qualities she will be expected to display for her younger teammates.
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