July 9, 2010

VILLANOVA, Pa. - The Villanova volleyball team has hired Julie Darty and Lindsay Shondell as assistant coaches, head coach Josh Steinbach announced this week. The duo completes the volleyball staff and will begin working with the team this month.

Darty joins the Wildcats from Oviedo, Fla. where she was an assistant coach at Lake Mary High School and an assistant coach at the Orlando Volleyball Academy where she worked with the 14 Asics and 16 Molten squads. At Mercer University, Darty was named to the Atlantic Sun All-Freshman team and was a four-year member of SAAC. She holds Mercer's career records in kills/set and is second in total kills.

Shondell was a setter at Purdue University and helped her team to three NCAA Tournament berths, including advancing to the Sweet Sixteen two consecutive years. She spent last season as the assistant coach at the University of Alabama at Birmingham where she served as the camp director, helped with recruiting and worked on planning practices and on-court instruction. She has also served as an assistant coach at Mississippi State and Stamford.

Darty will work primarily with the Wildcat outside hitters and be involved heavily with recruiting, while Shondell will focus on the defensive players and setters along with recruiting duties.