Head Coach Val Jones, a 27-year coaching veteran, finished her fourth season with the Mammoths in 2024 after taking the reins of the program in 2020.
After the 2020 season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Jones made her Amherst debut in 2021, leading the Mammoths to a 16-5 overall record and a 6-4 mark in NESCAC play before upsetting Middlebury in the NESCAC quarterfinals and advancing to the semifinal round of the tournament.
In 2022, the Mammoths achieved a 14-7 record, reaching the NESCAC quarterfinals. The Mammoths reached the NESCAC quarterfinals again in 2023 and achieved a winning record of 11-10 in 2024, securing a significant upset against the Middlebury Panthers, who went on to win the NESCAC championship.
In her tenure at Amherst, she has coached three players to First Team All-NESCAC selections and three players to a Second Team All-NESCAC honor. Four players have been named AVCA All-Region selections, which double as All-America honorable mention honors, with an additional All-Region honorable mention nod under Jones' oversight.
Bringing a wealth of experience to Amherst, Jones has served as the head coach at several NCAA Division I and II programs, most recently at Clark Atlanta University (CAU).
During her two years at CAU, Jones mentored two All-Conference selections and seven All-Academic honorees. Prior to that, she served as head coach of the Division I South Carolina State University program, was the inaugural head coach of the Division I Kennesaw State University team, and spent four years at Joliet Junior College in Illinois, where she guided the program to a top-10 ranking and back-to-back berths in the National Junior College Athletic Association Region IV championship tournament while also serving as the athletic department's women's athletics coordinator. Before that, Jones was an assistant volleyball coach at Northwestern University, the University of California Davis and Utah State University. Outside of the collegiate ranks, she guided Whitewater High School in Fayetteville, Georgia, to a 5A State title with a single-season record of 53-3, for which she was named the Georgia Athletic Coaches Association State and Regional Coach of the Year.
A dedicated teacher of the game and member of the American Volleyball Coaches Association since 1998, Jones is also active at the club level and is the current Master Coach for Atlanta Elite Volleyball University. She holds a USA Volleyball 18-National Division Championship title as the head coach of the Tsunami Volleyball Club 18-1 team.
Jones earned a bachelor of science degree in exercise science and sport studies from the University of Tampa and a master's degree in physical education with a focus on sport psychology and counseling from the University of North Dakota.
VAL JONES COACHING CAREER
2020–present: Head Coach, Amherst College
2018–19: Head Coach, Clark Atlanta University
2016–17: Head Coach & Physical Education Teacher, Emerald High School
2013–15: Head Coach, South Carolina State University
2011–12: Head Coach, Whitewater High School
2006–08: Head Coach, Kennesaw State University
2002–05: Head Coach & Women's Athletics Coordinator, Joliet Junior College
2000–01: Assistant Coach, Northwestern University
1999: Assistant Coach, University of California Davis
1998: Assistant Coach, Utah State University
1996–97: Graduate Assistant, University of North Dakota
