Faith Dooley Named Head Coach

MOORHEAD, Minn. (4/02/19)---Concordia Athletic Director Rachel Bergeson announced that former University of North Dakota All-American Faith Dooley has been hired as head coach of the Cobber volleyball program.

Dooley becomes the sixth head coach in program history. She takes over for Tim Mosser who resigned in December after coaching the team for 26 seasons.  

"I am tremendously excited about having Faith as our new head coach," Bergeson commented. "Her passion for the game, communication skills and knowledge of the volleyball community in this area were very impressive in the interview process."

Dooley was a standout for the Fighting Hawks for four seasons and helped UND earn a pair of NCAA Tournament appearances. She was named the Big Sky Tournament Most Valuable Player in her junior and senior seasons and became the first-ever UND player to earn all-conference honors in four seasons.

Dooley is the school's all-time career record holder for blocks and also owns the Big Sky record for blocks in a career.

"I can't wait to start my coaching career at Concordia," Dooley said. "I'm excited to come in and work with the team and give them something new. I was very impressed with the Rachel (Bergeson) and everyone at Concordia. They were very inviting and welcoming and it felt like a family."   

During her time at the University of North Dakota, Dooley worked as an assistant strength and conditioning coach where she was responsible for nutrition guidance and training, providing injured athletes with supplemental work during rehabilitation and meeting with incoming student/athlete recruits about the strength and conditioning program.

Dooley has also served as a head coach in the Grand Forks Stars Volleyball Club and was on the Board of Directors with the Hawkademy Leadership Program at UND.  

"I think my experiences I've had as an athlete and the leadership roles I have earned will be a big help for my coaching career," Dooley said.
    
In addition to her playing career for the UND volleyball team where she was a 3-year captain, Dooley also played for the Fighting Hawks basketball team in her junior and senior seasons and was named the team captain as a senior.

"One of the qualities that impressed me most about Faith was her wide variety of playing, coaching and leadership experiences," Bergeson said. "Having gone to high school in the area and then played at North Dakota, her ability to recruit quality student/athletes from the area will also be a huge bonus."

Dooley was one of the top high school student/athletes in the state of North Dakota. She earned 12 varsity letters in three sports at Central Cass High School. She helped Central Cass win the state championship in volleyball and was a 3-time All-Region honoree. Dooley was also an all-conference, all-region and all-state selection in basketball and qualified for state meet in track and field in the high jump high jump all four years - finishing second as a senior.      

Dooley is currently working on her master's degree in Exercise Physiology and serves as an assistant coach for the Fisher-Climax-Sacred Heart High School track & field team.

Dooley will begin her coaching responsibilities on Monday, Apr. 8.