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AHSVCA Board of Directors
Meet the AHSVCA Board of Directors—dedicated leaders guiding the The Alabama High School Volleyball Coaches Association (AHSVCA) to promote the highest standards of coaching, supporting student-athletes, and advancing the game of volleyball throughout Alabama through education, advocacy, and community.
Amy Patterson, Executive Director
Alabama High School Volleyball Coaches Association
Amy Patterson has a long history of dedicated service to Alabama high school volleyball. She is a health educator at Brewbaker Technology Magnet High School and has coached high school volleyball for 22 years, along with serving as a boys and girls tennis coach. Her commitment to student-athletes and the sport has made a lasting impact across the state.
Amy previously served for many years as President of the Alabama High School Volleyball Coaches Association and now leads as the AHSVCA Executive Director. She also represents Alabama nationally as a member of the AVCA High School Leadership Council. Her favorite part of coaching is seeing a player “get it”— not just in terms of skill, but in learning life lessons they carry with them. She values the camaraderie among coaches and advises new coaches to “do it your way, but never hesitate to find mentors along the way and adapt over time.”
Perry Robinson, President
Pelham High School Volleyball Head Coach
Perry Robinson has served 27 years as head volleyball coach, including 10 years at the college level and 17 years at high school, achieving a 645-452 career coaching record. During his 13 seasons as Pelham High School Volleyball Head Coach, Coach Robinson’s teams have won 397 matches and advanced to the AHSAA State Championship 3x. Robinson led Pelham to win the AHSAA State Championship in 2017 and place second 2x (2014, 2024).
Coach Robinson was named AHSVCA Class 6A Coach of the Year (2024), AL.com Birmingham Region Coach of the Year 2x (2017, 2023), and Shelby County Coach of the Year (2012). His fellow coaches call him a role model for ALL coaches - new and experienced, and commend his efforts to grow the game of volleyball. He serves as the AHSVCA President and AHSVCA Awards and Recognition Committee Chair.
Lisa Bates, Board Member
Sand Rock High School Volleyball Head Coach
Lisa Bates is in her 25th season as the head coach for Sand Rock High School. She represents the smaller schools and those coaches who may be balancing the responsibilities of being the head coach of another sport as well as she has been the head coach for basketball as well for those 25 years. Being at a small school for all of her coaching career, she brings a different perspective and desire to see the sport she coaches with fire and passion grow at all levels. Lisa played college basketball at Jacksonville State University where she is a member of the Hall of Fame. Her career volleyball coaching record is 839-330 (all at the same school). Lisa takes pride in getting all she can out of her girls each year, making lifelong connections, and teaching her girls life lessons to help them be successful and strong women. Her volleyball teams have won 11 county championships, 13 area championships, made 12 state tournament appearances, made 8 Final Fours, and finished 2A State Runner-up in 2023.
Tanya Broadway, Board Member
Kate Duncan Smith DAR High School Volleyball Head Coach
Tanya Broadway has been coaching volleyball for over 30 years and currently serves as Head Coach at Kate Duncan Smith DAR High School and Director/Head Coach of All In Volleyball Club. She began her head coaching career at Grissom High School in 1994, where she led the Tigers to a 1,257-395 record, winning two state championships and finishing as runner-up eight times. Her teams made multiple Final Four and Elite Eight appearances, and she earned numerous coaching honors including Huntsville City Coach of the Year seven times.
Broadway has been a member of AHSVCA since 1996 and served on the AHSAA Volleyball Coaches Committee for 16 years. She was inducted into the Huntsville-Madison County Sports Hall of Fame and the AHSVCA Hall of Fame in 2022, the UAH Sports Hall of Fame in 2023, and the Alabama High School Sports Hall of Fame in 2025. She continues to mentor athletes and contribute to the growth of volleyball across Alabama.
Kimberly Cook, Board Member
Shades Valley High School Volleyball Head Coach
With over a decade of coaching experience, Kimberly Cook currently leads the Shades Valley High School Girls Volleyball program. Her passion lies in using volleyball as a platform to mentor young athletes, helping them reach their full potential both on and off the court. Her advice to new coaches is to always remain a student of the game and to remember only 10% of the season is spent playing matches—the other 90% is a meaningful opportunity to mentor, inspire, and invest in your players’ growth.
Meredith Donald, Board Member
St. Luke's Episcopal School Volleyball Head Coach
Meredith Donald has served as St. Luke’s Head Volleyball Coach for the past 11 years, leading the Wildcats to the Elite Eight State Championships in 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2022, 2023, and 2024. She has 8 Final Four appearances and has won 8 Area Championships. In 2016 and 2017 Meredith won the State Championship. Her team finished the season in the 3A final 4. Coach Donald has a career record of 352-159. She also coached the Alabama North-South All-Star team in 2020.
She was named to the AVCA Thirty Under 30 list in 2019. Coach Donald is the Mobile County Coaches Association President, and serves on the AVCA nominating committee and the AHSVCA Awards and Recognition Committee.
Holly Richards, Board Member
Westminster Academy Volleyball Head Coach
Coach Holly Richards played at Westminster Christian Academy, Wallace State Community College and the University of Alabama. While at Wallace State Community College, Coach Holly was named to multiple all-tournament teams, the NJCCA Region XI All-Region team and she was also named All-American Honorable Mention. After a year at Wallace State, Coach Holly ended her playing career at the University of Alabama. She was named All-SEC 2nd team, holds multiple blocking records, ranked in the top 10 list of single season total blocks and was captain her senior season.
Coach Holly has 30+ years of experience coaching (High School, College, Club and multiple camps). She has coached at American Christian Academy (Tuscaloosa) and Tuscaloosa Volleyball Club where she was a board member and coach. She also spent 2 years as the Assistant Coach at UAH and 2 years as the Assistant Coach at Mississippi State University.
Kaydi Woodard, Board Member
Vinemont High School Volleyball Head Coach
Kaydi Woodard began coaching in 2020 at her alma mater, Addison High School, where she amassed a record of 207-55. During her five years at Addison, she led her teams to five Area Championships, four North Regional Championships, two 2A State Championships(2020, 2021) and one 1A State Championship(2022). Her teams finished in the Final Four in 2023 and 2024.
Coach Woodard is now the Head Coach at Vinemont High School. During her first season, she led them to win an Area Championship- only the 2nd in school history. She serves as a Board Member for the AHSVCA.
Julie Gordon, Emeritus Board Member
Montgomery Academic Volleyball Head Coach (Retired)
Coach Julie Gordon served as Montgomery Academy’s Head Volleyball Coach for 46 years, retiring in 2025 with a remarkable 1645-438 (79%) record—ranking second nationally among active coaches per the NFHS National High School Sports Record Book. She led the Eagles to eight AHSAA state championships and 10 runner-up finishes, becoming one of only two volleyball coaches in Alabama with over 1,500 career wins.
Gordon is a member of both the AHSAA Hall of Fame (2013) and the AHSVCA Hall of Fame (2021). Her recent honors include Alabama Volleyball Coach of the Year, NFHS Section 3 Coach of the Year, NFHS National Coach of the Year (all 2023–24), and AHSVCA 5A Coach of the Year (2023). She is also a past Montgomery Coach of the Year.
In addition to volleyball, Gordon has coached basketball, softball, track and field, and currently coaches golf. She served 14 years on the AVCA High School Leadership Council and nine years as AHSVCA Vice President and now continues her service as an Emeritus Board Member of the AHSVCA.
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