After the difficult departure of assistant coaches Eric Barber and Kylin Muñoz, Gophers volleyball coach Keegan Cook was left in the unenviable position of needing to rebuild his coaching staff after just one season. Ahead of spring practice, he’s put on the finishing touches.
Gophers volleyball adds assistant Crissy Jones Schoonderwoerd, finalizes 2024 coaching staff
Following the departure of two assistant coaches, Keegan Cook has finalized his staff for next season with Crissy Jones Schoonderwoerd, who spent last season as the interim head coach at Cal.
The Minnesota Star Tribune
January 20, 2024 at 6:38PM
Crissy Jones Schoonderwoerd, who spent last season as the interim head coach at Cal, was announced as an assistant coach for the Gophers on Saturday. She joins associate head coach Kristen Kelsay and assistant Pedro Mendes on the staff under Cook. Mendes, who spent last season at Northwestern and had previously coached at the U under Hugh McCutcheon, was hired last week.
Before last season, Jones Schoonderwoerd was named an assistant coach at Cal in February, but when head coach Sam Crosson announced his resignation, Jones Schoonderwoerd was named interim head coach. She guided the Golden Bears to a 16-15 record, their first winning season since 2019.
Jones Schoonderwoerd has a history with Cook. She played for him at Washington, where she was named an All-American and helped the Huskies reach two Elite Eights. She was also a stellar beach volleyball player, earning an All-American honor in that sport as a graduate player at Cal Poly before embarking on a professional and Olympic career.
The match was the first between Washington and the Gophers since Keegan Cook left the Huskies to coach Minnesota.
