Women's Volleyball Adds Toone to Coaching Staff

PROVO, Utah -- BYU women’s volleyball head coach Shay Goulding announced the hiring of Emillie Toone as an assistant coach for the 2011 season Thursday.

“We’re thrilled to have Emillie as part of our coaching staff,” Goulding said. “We feel she’s a perfect addition to our team and will be a great face for BYU volleyball.”

Toone has coached club volleyball for six years before coming to BYU. Her team placed first in the competitive division and was in the top ten the other five years. She also assisted with camps throughout the Salt Lake Valley.

Toone played college volleyball at Utah 2004-2007, helping the Utes to a Mountain West Conference championship and the second round of the NCAA Championships as a junior. A middle blocker and right side hitter, Toone started 63 matches and played in 95 (315 games) for Utah. Against Wyoming, Toone recorded a career-high 17 kills and recorded a career-high 14 blocks against Colorado State in her junior season. Her highest hitting percentage came in a 2005 match against Air Force, where she reached .778. Toone also set a school record for block assists, with 14 against CSU.

“A lot of people ask me why I switched from Utah to BYU,” Toone said. “Going into college, I felt the ‘U’ was a better place for me to play, but I always had a dream to be at BYU. So when I heard about the coaching opportunity, I jumped on it. I’m excited to work with Shay [Goulding] and Shawn [Olmstead] and be part of their coaching staff.”

Following her time at Utah, Toone played professional volleyball in Slovenia for nine months and helped her team to a national championship. She also played with both the U. S. national team and the Canadian national team because of her dual citizenship.

Originally from Canada, Toone’s family moved to American Fork when she was young. Toone played volleyball for American Fork High School, averaging 21 kills per match her senior year. She also had 39 kills in the 2003 state championship match. Toone was named to the Utah's all-state first team as a senior.

Toone graduated from Utah in 2009 with a major in exercise and sports science and a minor in nutrition. When she isn't playing volleyball, Toone likes to play the piano, read and spend time with her family.