Materazzi becomes CSUMB head coach

SEASIDE — A homecoming 14 years in the making completes Cal State Monterey Bay’s volleyball coaching search as former Otter great Courtney (Taubert) Materazzi returns to The Kelp Bed as head coach for the 2021 season.

She replaces Moe Melhart, who became CSUMB’s assistant athletic director for development and senior women’s administrator earlier this month.

Former Madera Coyote great, Materazzi spent the past seven seasons in a highly successful run at NCAA Division II Fairmont State (West Virginia), where she led the Fighting Falcons to a 130–75 record since taking the reins in 2014. During her tenure, she led Fairmont to multiple regional rankings, seven Mountain East Conference Tournament appearances and an NCAA tournament bid in 2016, the school’s first in 15 seasons.

Following the 2021 spring season, Materazzi was named MEC Coach of the Year.

“We are thrilled to be able to welcome Courtney and her family back home to California and CSUMB,” says Director of Athletics Kirby Garry. “I am confident that Courtney will be a strong leader and mentor for our women’s volleyball student–athletes, our department and University. Courtney has a track record of success on the court as an NCAA DII head coach and has demonstrated an impressive commitment to diversity and inclusion, social justice and mental health initiatives off the court throughout her career.”

“Although I moved across the nation following my graduation from CSUMB, I could never truly leave it behind and have always considered it one of the best places in the world,” says Materazzi. “To reengage in the wonderful community on campus and off is something for which I’m counting down the days. The culture of the volleyball program is fantastic, emphasizing integrity, gratitude and family. I look forward to fostering those pillars and more, while pushing for CCAA and NCAA tournament berths.”

In addition to her team’s success on the court, her Fighting Falcons were known for excelling in the classroom. The 2020 season marked Fairmont’s sixth consecutive appearance among the AVCA’s Team Academic Award winners, a list on which CSUMB volleyball is a frequent member.

Before becoming head coach, Materazzi also served as an assistant at Fairmont for three seasons. Prior to that, she was an assistant for both indoor and beach volleyball at NCAA Division I member Stetson University.

As a student–athlete, Materazzi left CSUMB as one of the top players in program history while leading the Otters through the transition from NAIA to NCAA Division II status. She finished her career ranked No. 2 on the CSUMB career kills list, No. 2 in digs, No. 3 in points and No. 4 in service aces. In 2007, she became the second volleyball player and the third Otter student–athlete to earn first or second team All–CCAA recognition when she received a second team award.

For her own work in the classroom, Materazzi earned her bachelor’s in liberal arts from CSUMB in 2008. She is a 2011 graduate of Fairmont State with a master’s in professional studies, education.

“Thanks Kirby Garry and John Fraire for this wonderful opportunity to return home,” says Materazzi. “To the members of the search committee and players available through the process I say thank you as well. I can’t wait to get to work. It feels very good to say again, ‘Go Otters!’”