ULM appoints Baylee Young as head beach volleyball coach

MONROE, Louisiana – Baylee Young, who led Webber International University to back-to-back NAIA National Championship appearances, has been named the next head coach of the University of Louisiana Monroe beach volleyball team, athletics director John Hartwell announced Tuesday.

“We are excited to welcome Baylee to the Warhawk Family as our new Head Beach Volleyball Coach,” Hartwell said. “She has been a winner as a student-athlete and as a head coach. Baylee’s personality and positivity absolutely reflect the mindset we are building across all of Warhawk Athletics. The future of our beach volleyball program is very bright.”

“I am incredibly honored and excited to be named the head beach volleyball coach at ULM,” said Young. “Thank you to John Hartwell for this opportunity. I look forward to working with these talented Warhawk student-athletes to create a team culture that strives for excellence every day.”

Young built Webber International into one of the top NAIA beach volleyball programs in the country. In 2024, Young led the team to its second consecutive NAIA National Championship appearance after the Warriors earned an automatic bid as the No. 5 national seed in the tournament. She led the Warriors to a Sun Conference Championship after posting a 9-1 conference record and an 18-8 regular season mark. Additionally, the Warriors won the 2024 AVCA Small College Beach Volleyball Championship. Young also mentored Delanie Johnson and Abigail Baxter, who were named NAIA First Team All-Americans.

In her first season at the helm of the program, Young was named the 2023 Sun Conference Coach of the Year after the Warriors ran the table in conference play with a 10-0 record. Under Young’s leadership, the Warriors finished third overall in the NAIA National Championships and won the Sun Conference Regular Season and Tournament Championships with an overall mark of 22-8. Young was also recognized as a 2023 AVCA Beach Volleyball 30 Under 30 recipient.

Prior to leading the women’s beach volleyball team at Webber International, Young served as head coach of the men’s beach volleyball team at Webber International in 2022, leading the team to a second-place finish at the men’s National Collegiate Beach Volleyball Championship.

Young is a former collegiate beach volleyball player and was a standout student-athlete at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. Young was a member of the first beach volleyball team in Mocs history and was team captain for all three seasons. A two-time All-Ohio Valley Conference First Team honoree, Young compiled an overall record of 28-23 while playing on the first pair all three seasons at Chattanooga.

Young earned her associate degree from Pensacola State College before graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree in Exercise Science from UT-Chattanooga. She is currently pursuing her Master of Business Administration degree from Webber International.