UNCG’s Nicholas Selected as Head Coach of Carolina Region High Performance Youth Team

GREENSBORO, N.C. – UNCG volleyball coach Patrick Nicholas has been selected as head coach of the Carolina Region High Performance Youth Team, the organization announced recently.

The Carolina Region is one of 40 regional volleyball associations under the umbrella of USA Volleyball, the national governing body for the sport. The High Performance Program touts itself as “the first step in the USA Volleyball athlete pipeline.”

Nicholas, who will be assisted by Western Carolina assistant coach John Brannon and Elon assistant coach Tina Readling, will be coaching the only team the Carolina Region will send to the U.S. High Performance national championships this year. The championships are in Des Moines, Iowa, from July 23-27.

“Coach Nicholas has been a terrific addition to the Carolina Region High Performance staff,” Region Director for High Performance Programs Sheila Holloway said. “As the program director, one of my responsibilities is to seek out highly effective coaches that are eager to work with kids of all ages and all skill levels. When I found out that Coach Nicholas was moving to our area, I was very excited about the possibility of recruiting him for our program. Coach Nicholas has a long and successful history as a coach, but his association with USA Volleyball and the High Performance Program dates back to its inception. I am pleased to say that this is his second year as a head coach for one of our High Performance teams, and his coaching style has had profound effects on the players, parents and the staff working with him.”

Nicholas also served as head coach of the Carolina Region High Performance Select Team in 2011, taking that team to the national championships in Tucson, Ariz. He previously owned and operated the High Performance Training Volleyball School in Austin, Texas, starting in 1996.

“I’m honored for the selection, for doing this a second year in a row,” Nicholas said. “I think it’s a very important thing that the USA Volleyball High Performance Program does, and all the regions now are participating in it. I was lucky enough to be involved when USA Volleyball first started the High Performance Programs at the national and international levels. We’re getting some very good kids from around the region and the state of North Carolina, and this year, the team looks pretty good. We’ve got some kids from last year’s team and some new kids are in the program that have some really good future potential. So, we’re pretty excited about the team and competing at the USA Volleyball High Performance national championships.”