WILLIAMSBURG, Va. - William & Mary announced today the hiring of Kellie Catanach Johnson to be the Tribe's 11th head volleyball coach. She is currently the associate head coach of the Duke Blue Devil women's volleyball team.
 
"I'm thrilled that Kellie is joining the Tribe as our head volleyball coach," said Brian D. Mann, director of athletics.  "We very quickly identified her as the person we wanted to lead our program.  She had an extraordinary All-American career as a student-athlete at Duke and that, plus her experience as a standout coach at her alma mater and her lifelong passion for volleyball, made her the right choice for William & Mary." 
 
"William & Mary is an incredible place that offers the best of all worlds, whether it's athletics, academics or alumni support," says Catanach Johnson.  "I want to build a program that everyone will be proud of while we give our student-athletes a great experience.  Everyone I've met is so wonderful that I can't wait to get started!" 
 
Catanach Johnson joined the Blue Devil staff as an assistant in 2019 and was promoted to associate head coach in 2022.  She was the recruiting coordinator and responsible for training and program administration.  In 2021, she was honored as a member of AVCA's Thirty Under 30 list. 
 
Prior to Duke, Catanach Johnson was Director of Education Services in the Student-Athlete Academic Services department at Florida State University.  She was responsible for day to day operations of educational services and was a liaison to advisors. 
 
During her playing career at Duke, Catanach Johnson was a four-year letterwinner and three-time All-American who starred on a team that made four NCAA appearances and won two ACC Championships.  She was the 2010 ACC Player of the Year and she finished her career ranked ninth in assists in the ACC.  She had at least 1,000 assists in her four seasons on the team and she was the team captain during her last two years at Duke. 
 
Catanach Johnson's love of volleyball started early.  Her dad, Chris Catanach, coached volleyball at the University of Tampa and in his 42-year illustrious career won four National Championships and was named AVCA National Coach of the Year five times.  "My sister and I basically grew up in the gym," she said.  "First we were chasing balls and when I got older I got to do some things with the team."
 
Catanach Johnson is taking over a program that finished 12-15 this fall, with a conference record of 7-9. The team just announced the signing of its incoming 2026 freshman class, and current players Kaitlyn Dunnigan, Katherine Arnason and Audrey Brcka were just named to the CSC Academic All-District team.

Catanach Johnson graduated from Duke in 2012 with a Bachelor of Art's degree and she earned a Master of Science degree in Sport Management from Florida State in 2015.  She will be joined in Williamsburg by her husband Dezmond Johnson, eight-month-old daughter Evie and their dog Bentley.