By Davis Ramage
“Our vision is ultimately to win the Big West tournament and then go deep into the NCAA tournament,” head coach Natalie Reagan said.
Natalie Reagan was announced as the new interim head coach of the women’s volleyball team at Long Beach State on Feb. 9.
Reagan was hired as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator in January 2023. After being with the team for just over a year, Reagan was promoted to head coach.
The keys to the program are being handed over to her by former head coach Tyler Hildebrand who brought excitement back to women’s volleyball at The Beach and is taking his talents to USC as an assistant coach.
Hildebrand went 40-19 in his two seasons at the helm and reached the inaugural Big West Championship, but fell to Hawai’i.
“I am so grateful for the year I got to work with Tyler, he is an incredible mentor and he did so many amazing things for this program,” Reagan said. “I truly believe under his leadership this program is back to a foundational place where we’re able to succeed.”
While Reagan said “There’ll be a little spice,” added to the team, she made it clear that the identity of the program and its players do not have to change.
“It’s been really important to us that we (the staff) communicate to them (the players) that they are enough and who they are is enough and they don’t need to change,” Reagan said.
2/09/24 - Long Beach, Calif: Long Beach State announced that Natalie Reagan will be the interim head coach for the women's volleyball team. During the third set of The Beach game against UCLA, she gave a heart to the student section and fans cheered loudly to show their support. Photo credit: Samuel Chacko
Reagan’s credentials include assistant director of volleyball operations at Oregon State, technical coordinator at Nebraska and assistant coach and recruiting coordinator for four years at Loyola Marymount University.
Nebraska is widely known as the nation’s powerhouse when it comes to women’s volleyball and Reagan got to witness firsthand what championship DNA looks like when she helped them to a national championship as technical coordinator in 2015.
“I think something that makes Nebraska really special is the tradition that they have there and the accepted culture that they have within that program, and I think that’s something that we’re building at Long Beach [State]” Reagan said.
Culture in college sports is different now than it was years ago as the new transfer portal rules can change the immediate trajectory of a program.
“The transfer portal can be a blessing and a curse,” Reagan said. “We are constantly on the portal, however, it is not something that we are actively looking at right now.”
The transfer portal allows players to leave whenever they want and when a team is in a transitional period like Long Beach State is right now, players often do leave.
Reagan said that to keep players from leaving she wants to make whatever her players are promised in the recruiting process come true daily.
Reagan said the recruiting process is “a really important coaching philosophy,” and it does not stop because players have an opportunity to leave as they want.
One of those players Reagan would love to retain is redshirt junior setter Zayna Meyer, who is coming off a year where she was named “Big West Setter of The Year.”
Meyer said her relationship with Reagan is “growing and pretty awesome.”
“Natalie brings emotional aspects to this team that we didn’t really have before and she connects with each of the girls in a really special way,” Meyer said.
Reagan hopes to settle into her new role and fulfill her vision of winning the Big West Championship in the 2024 season.
