Virginia Volleyball Assistant Coach Smith Named to AVCA's Thirty Under 30

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March 27, 2013

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LEXINGTON, Ky.—Virginia volleyball assistant coach Aaron Smith has been honored as one the American Volleyball Coaches Association’s Thirty Under 30 award winners. Smith completed his first season as an assistant at UVa in 2012.

“Sustainability is all about identifying rising stars and nurturing their career growth,” said AVCA Executive Director Kathy DeBoer in a statement. “This Thirty Under 30 class, the AVCA’s fifth, is full of future leaders in the sport of volleyball. We congratulate them and, through them, celebrate our potential.”

The AVCA created the award in 2009 to honor up-and-coming coaching talent at all levels of the sport. To qualify for the award, nominees had to be 30 years old or younger in 2012. Of the 30 recipients, 12 are head coaches and 18 are assistant coaches with nine coming from the NCAA Division I ranks.

Smith joined head coach Dennis Hohenshelt’s staff in April 2012 after Hohenshelt was hired as UVa’s head coach in January 2012 and works primarily with the Cavalier middle blockers and right-side hitters.

Smith, who played for Hohenshelt on the Penn State men’s team from 2004-06, was an assistant coach at Northwestern for three seasons from 2009-11 before moving to Charlottesville.