TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Indiana State Director of Athletics Sherard Clinkscales announced Thursday that Ashlee Pritchard has been named the 10th head volleyball coach in Sycamore history.
  
Pritchard takes over the reins of the program following the departure of former ISU head volleyball coach Lindsay Allman after Allman accepted the role as the associate head coach at Florida State earlier this spring.
 
"I couldn't be happier to have Ashlee lead our program," Clinkscales said. "Her competitive success and proven leadership in developing student-athletes into productive citizens will continue to be the mantra of our program.  I look forward to working with Ashlee in bringing an MVC championship to Terre Haute."
 
Pritchard comes to Terre Haute after spending the last 10 seasons as the head coach at Marian (Ind.), turning the Knights into an NAIA power. She compiled a 222-103 record during her time on the sidelines at Marian, including a 161-37 mark over the last six seasons and a 75-9 record in conference play over the last five seasons. Marian posted the only 30-win seasons in program history under Pritchard. She had three in the past five years. The Knights have finished either first or second in the Crossroads League each of the last five seasons.
 
Marian won four Crossroads League regular season titles and two conference tournament titles during her tenure, including a sweep of the conference championships last season. The Knights made the NAIA Tournament in each of the last five seasons, going 15-8 in the postseason and winning the first national championship in program history in 2019.
 
Pritchard developed 11 NAIA All-Americans and 42 All-Crossroads League selections during her time at Marian. Her coaching ability has been recognized on multiple occasions at the conference, regional and national level. Pritchard was named Crossroads League Coach of the Year four times, while also earning four AVCA Midcentral Region Coach of the Year honors. She was also named the 2019 NAIA/AVCA National Coach of the Year and was twice an AVCA "Thirty Under 30" Award winner.
 
"I am excited about Coach Pritchard joining our department and leading our volleyball team," Indiana State Senior Associate Athletic Director for Business and Senior Woman Administrator Angie Lansing said. "I believe she has what it takes to move our program forward."
 
In her most recent season on the sidelines, Pritchard led Marian to a 35-3 record during the 2021 season, including a 17-1 mark in conference play. It was the third 30-win season for Marian during Pritchard's tenure, all coming since 2018. The Knights won the Crossroads League regular season and tournament titles, while also reaching the semifinals of the NAIA Tournament and finishing the season ranked fourth in the nation.
 
Pritchard turned the Knights into one of the premier programs of the Crossroads Leagues over the course of the last five seasons. Marian advanced to the NAIA Tournament every season from 2017-21, including a historic run to the national championship in 2019. Her 2019 team went 38-2, including seven wins in postseason play to claim the first volleyball national title in school history and finish the season ranked first in the nation. The 2019 season saw Pritchard named the NAIA National Coach of the Year and the National Tournament Coach of the Year.
 
Pritchard also led the Knights to their first 30-win season in program history in 2018 with a 30-7 record. Marian won the Crossroads League regular season title in four of the last five seasons, while also winning conference tournament titles in 2018 and 2021. Marian was ranked in each of the last 26 national polls to close Pritchard's tenure, a streak that dated back to midway through the 2018 season and was among the NAIA's top 10 active streaks.
 
During Pritchard's tenure, Marian was one of the top teams in the nation when it comes to defending its home court. The Knights went 98-26 at home in her 10 years as head coach, including a 74-7 mark on their home court over the last six seasons.
 
Prior to her time at Marian, Pritchard spent three seasons as an assistant coach at Taylor University, where she helped lead the Trojans to a 103-24 record. Taylor won the Mid-Central Conference championship in all three seasons Pritchard was on the bench, amassing a 41-1 record in conference play. The Trojans won at least 30 games in each of Pritchard's three seasons on staff, making three trips to the NAIA Tournament.
 
Pritchard was a four-year player at Taylor, where she was a part of back-to-back conference titles for the Trojans. She was a team captain her senior season and finished her career ranked fourth in school history in digs.
 
Pritchard graduated from Taylor with a bachelor's degree in exercise science with a minor in management in 2009 and earned a master's degree in sports administration from Liberty University in 2014. She and her husband, Nathan, have two children, Charlotte and Drummond.
 
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