LIBERTY, Mo. – William Jewell College has announced the hiring of Deardin Kelley as head volleyball coach, effective February 7.
 
"After a comprehensive search, I'm excited to welcome Deardin to The Hill," said Interim Athletics Director Chris McCabe. "It was important that we found someone who understood the value of the student-athlete experience, while also demonstrating the ability to achieve at a high level. Deardin has the enthusiasm necessary for the opportunity and a vision that will propel Jewell volleyball into the future. I'm especially grateful for Senior Woman Administrator JaeLynn Ellison as well as Assistant Athletics Director Chris Loftin who poured countless time and effort into the search. It's an exciting day for Jewell Athletics and Jewell volleyball."
 
Kelley comes to The Hill from Coffeyville Community College, a member of the strong Kansas Jayhawk Conference, where she served as head coach for two seasons during which time, she led the program to 48 wins. With Coffeyville, she mentored four All-Conference and four All-Region performers while leading the Ravens to an appearance in the Region IV Tournament championship match in 2022.
 
In her first season at the helm, Coffeyville went 26-10, an eight-win improvement from the previous year. Last season, the Ravens were 22-14 overall, including a dominant 13-2 at home. Her teams earned KJCCC All-Academic honors in 2022 and 2023. Prior to Coffeyville, she spent two years as an assistant coach at Labette Community College. During the last two summers, she has spent time as a coach with Team USA, overseeing squads competing in Spain and Australia.

"I'm so excited to get started with the team, getting to know them and creating a new culture as a unit," said Kelley. "I am very thankful for the opportunity to compete at a new level and lead this program into the future."
 
Kelley played collegiately beginning at Fort Scott Community College, where she amassed 404 kills and 315 digs as an outside hitter before completing her career at Southwestern College (Kan.) where she was twice named an NAIA Scholar-Athlete.
 
She earned her bachelor's degree in psychology at Southwestern followed by a master's in human resource development with an emphasis in leadership and organizational development at Pittsburg State University. She also holds an associate degree in science from Fort Scott.