Gordon College Athletics

Sue Kelly assumed the head women's volleyball coach post at Gordon College in the spring of 2014.

By The Numbers
Seasons at Gordon: 2014-present | Overall Record

Program Honors 
65 Commonwealth Coast Conference All-Academic Selections
24 All Commonwealth Coast Conference Selections
3 NEWVA Senior Classic All-Star Team (Jenny Curtiss, Amanda Snyder, and Jamie Tafoya 2019)
3 New England Women's Volleyball Association (NEWVA) All Region (Val Nilan, Kate Howe, Annie Murphy, 2022)
2 Commonwealth Coast Conference Sportsmanship Awards
2 Commonwealth Coast Conference Libero of the Year (Maggie Risma 2015, 2015)
1 American Volleyball Coaches Association All-Region (Valerie Nilan, honorable mention, 2021, 2022)
2 Commonwealth Coast Conference Championship Game Appearances
1 Commonwealth Coast Conference Rookie of the Year (Ashlyn Gergins, 2017)
1 Commonwealth Coast Conference Player of the Year (Valerie Nilan, 2021)
2 Commonwealth Coast Conference Coach of the Year (2015, 2022)
1 Regular Season Commonwealth Coast Conference Title (2022)
2 AVCA Academic Team Award
3 College Sports Communicators Academic All-District Team
Notable Achievements

• Defeated CCC rival Roger Williams on Oct. 2 which was the first victory since 2007
• Jenny Curtiss reached the 1,000 dig milestone on Sept. 4, 2019
• Ashlyn Gergins eclipsed the 2,000 assist mark in a sweep of Suffolk on Sept. 17, 2019 
• Mackenzie Hinds joined the 1,000 kill club in a 3-2 victory over Eastern Nazarene on October 11, 2018
• Maggie Risma notched her 2,000th career dig in 2016
• Coach Kelley recorded her 100th career win at the helm on September 16, 2021.
• Valerie Nilan was third in the nation in hitting percentage in 2022.
• The Scots hosted the CCC Championship Title Game in 2022.

Before Gordon  
Kelly has extensive coaching experience in all three divisions of NCAA volleyball as well as at the senior and junior high school level, most recently serving as an assistant to the Messiah College women's volleyball team. Beginning her career as the head coach at Liberty University in 1986 where she was named AVCA Atlantic Region Coach of the Year (1987), she went on to take the helm at St. Louis University in 1991, following which she broke from coaching to enter full time sport ministry with the Fellowship of Christian Athletes.

Serving in several capacities while with FCA, Kelly started as a huddle ministry coordinator and progressed to associate state director and regional director appointments where she helped implement college retreats, founded the East Coast Women In Sport Retreat, arranged several social and leadership events, and acted as chaplain for the Portland Fire WNBA team.

Playing Career
A four-sport standout at Bethany College, she competed in volleyball, basketball, softball, and track & field while earning a degree in health and physical education in 1983. She then obtained a master's degree in motor learning in 1991 from the University of Virginia, and in 1993 was inducted as the first female athlete into the Bethany College Hall of Honor.

updated August 2024