Volleyball | 5/1/2015 10:02:00 AM

GALESBURG, Illinois – The search for Knox College's new head volleyball coach is over with the selection of Ashley McDonough for the post, according to athletic director Chad Eisele.

McDonough comes to Knox from Cayuga Community College in Auburn, New York, where she was the head volleyball coach the past two seasons and the driving force behind the program's rapid improvement.

"I think Ashley's energy and enthusiasm for the game of volleyball will help our program continue to move forward," Eisele said.

The Prairie Fire made considerable progress against Midwest Conference competition last year.  Projected as the cellar dweller in the 2014 MWC preseason coaches' poll, Knox beat two straight league opponents to close out the season and finished with the most conference victories since 1995.

McDonough leaves behind a resurgent program at Cayuga that posted eight total wins during the three years prior to her arrival to 13 last fall, the highest win total since women's volleyball was reintroduced at the school in 2010.  She also had two All Mid-State Athletic Conference (MSAC) honorees, and the Spartans are projected to win the conference in 2015.

"I'm excited to take this position (at Knox) for both personal and professional reasons," McDonough said.  "Obviously returning to the NCAA after spending the past two years with the NJCAA is a move up for me.  Personally, as a Chicago native, my family is all within arm's reach."

Her previous coaching experience also includes serving as a volunteer assistant at the University of Houston, a head coach and drill instructor for the Gulf Coast Volleyball Association's 13-15 age groups, and the varsity volleyball head coach at Living Stones Christian Academy – all located in and around Houston.

"I'm a very intense coach and I love what I do," McDonough said.  "The cornerstones of my program can be summed up in three words: communication, intensity, and focus.  I want my athletes to share my passion and adopt the same concepts."

McDonough has a bachelor's degree in criminology from the University of Houston-Clear Lake and a master's of business administration from the University of Phoenix.