The 2024 season marks the fifth for Matt Stolz as an assistant coach on the Redhawks volleyball staff.
In 2023, Stolz became the 'Recruiting Coordinator' for the Redhawks volleyball program and helped SEMO bring in 12 new student-athletes for the 2024 season.
During the 2023 regular season, Stolz helped Head Coach Julie Yankus to a 22-10 overall record and a 12-6 mark in Ohio Valley Conference play. The Redhawks were the No. 2 overall seed in the conference tournament where they knocked off #7 Western Illinois and #3 Lindenwood en route to a tournament finals appearance.
Stolz helped lead the Redhawks to the 2021 OVC Regular Season and Tournament titles. The Redhawks finished the 2021 season with a mark of 26-8 including a 14-4 record in OVC competitions which matched its league win mark from the 2020-21 season. SEMO's 26 overall wins in 2021 is the highest win total since 28 in 1999 (28-6).
SEMO secured a share of the 2021 Ohio Valley Conference Regular-Season title and the top seed in the 2021 OVC Championship Tournament with a series sweep of Morehead State in the final week of the regular season. The title was SEMO's 10th OVC Regular-Season title in program history and first since 2007. SEMO tallied five regular-season sweeps of OVC opponents and nine 3-0 victories in 2021.
As the top seed and host, the Redhawks secured the 2021 OVC Tournament Championship with a five-set decision (25-22, 25-23, 19-25, 15-25, 15-13) over #2 Morehead State Nov. 20 at Houck Field House. With the victory, the Redhawks won their second OVC Tournament Championship in three seasons and seventh in program history. Southeast Missouri also won the regular-season and the tournament title in the same season for the first time since 2000.
SEMO swept #8 Eastern Illinois in the First Round of the 2021 OVC Tournament, 25-13, 25-15, 25-18, before besting #5 Murray State in four sets (22-25, 25-18, 25-15, 26-24) in the Semifinals.
As OVC Tournament Champions, SEMO represented the conference in the First Round of the 2021 NCAA Women's Volleyball Championship. The Redhawks fell to #7-seed Kentucky in three sets to conclude their historic season.
Stolz coached five All-OVC Players in 2021. Laney Malloy, Colby Greene, and Claire Ochs were named to the 2021 All-OVC Tournament Team. Ochs was also tabbed the 2021 OVC Tournament MVP.
Malloy, Zoey Beasley, and Ochs were also named to the 2021 All-OVC First Team while Tara Beilsmith was selected to the 2021 All-OVC Second Team. Malloy was also tabbed the OVC Player of the Year while Ochs earned OVC Setter of the Year. Head coach Julie Yankus was also awarded OVC Coach of the Year.
In Stolz’s first season at SEMO, the Redhawks finished with a 14-3 overall record. SEMO posted a 14-2 record in OVC play for third in the league and the no. 3 seed at the 2020-21 OVC Championship Tournament. SEMO's 14 league wins in 2020-21 are the most in the past 13 seasons as the 2007 SEMO team finished with a mark of 15-5.
After dropping their opening weekend at Jacksonville State, SEMO went on a 14-match win streak with seven series victories over Eastern Kentucky, Belmont, SIUE, UT Martin, Austin Peay, Eastern Illinois and Murray State.
The Redhawks' OVC winning percentage of .875 is the highest since 2000, when SEMO was perfect in league play, 16-0 (1.000). SEMO last finished an OVC slate with a record of 14-2 in 1995.
Senior outside hitter Laney Malloy and junior setter Claire Ochs were both named to the 2020-21 All-OVC First-Team. Ochs was also selected to the 2020-21 OVC Championship All-Tournament Team for the second-straight season.
Stolz also coached three OVC weekly award winners during the 2020-21 season in Ally Dion (Defensive), Laney Malloy (Offensive) and Tara Beilsmith (Defensive).
Stolz spent the 2019 season with Marquette in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, as a member of the coaching staff.
Marquette finished 2019 with a 28-6 overall record and a 16-2 mark in the Big East as they earned a berth in the NCAA Championship. Stolz helped coach BIG EAST Player of the Year and American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) All-American Honorable Mention Allie Barber as well as All-BIG East Team players Martha Konovodoff, Hope Werch, and Hannah Vanden Berg.
Prior to Marquette, Stolz served as an assistant coach at Averett University in Danville, Virginia, for two seasons while pursuing his master's degree. Stolz also served as the head coach of the Pura Vida Volleyball Club during that time.
Stolz was a standout volleyball player for Lakeland University in Howards Grove, Wisconsin. The Wauwatosa, Wisconsin native, owns Lakeland's career kills record with 895, and he received All-Midwest Collegiate Volleyball League First Team laurels in each of his final two seasons as a Muskie. As a three-year starter and captain, he also earned academic all-conference honors multiple times.
In addition to his playing career, Stolz served as the girls' junior varsity coach and assistant varsity coach at Howards Grove High School.
Stolz graduated from Lakeland in 2017 with his Bachelor's in Business Administration. He also graduated with a Master’s in Business Administration from Averett in 2019.
