JCCC hires long-time assistant to take over volleyball program
Johnson County Community College |
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That occurred for the Johnson County Community College volleyball program following the 1996 season when Hall of Fame coach Susan Brown decided to retire from coaching. Taking her place was Jill Stinson, who stepped in and elevated the program to its highest level, wining a national title in 2005, and finishing runner-up in 2007. Now she is stepping away from coaching, and JCCC was faced with that same scenario.
However, at JCCC, the search was short and speculation negligible. Jennifer Ei played an extremely vital role in helping build Stinson’s legacy of success, and now is prepared for the opportunity to step in as the head coach.
When Stinson announced she would retire after 11 years, 299 victories and a .713 winning percentage, JCCC athletics director Carl Heinrich smartly turned to Jenny Ei, a JCCC alum herself, and Academic All-American outside hitter, who had been with Stinson as both a player and assistant coach.
During Ei’s time as Stinson’ top assistant, the JCCC volleyball program were the most productive in team history. The team posted a 144-36 record, good for an .800 winning percentage. Ei helped the Cavaliers land 2005 NJCAA Tournament MVP and NJCAA and AVCA All-American Lauren Kracl, along with All-Americans Emily Escher, Katie Latenser, Jackie Swab and Sydney Pemberton. Since joining the program in 2003, Ei has helped tutor some of the top players in the Jayhawk Conference and NJCAA. In all, she has coached eight All-Americans, 23 All-Region selections, 25 All-East Jayhawk Conference picks, including two season MVPs, and five NJCAA All-Tournament selections.
The team honors are just as impressive. In her five years helping the program, JCCC qualified for the national tournament four times, winning a national title in 2005, placing second in 2007, and finished ninth in 2003 and 2006. This past season, JCCC won the conference title with a perfect 9-0 record, and were ranked in the top five in seven of nine weekly polls.
While Ei was new to coaching when she was hired in 2003, she was not a stranger to JCCC nor to the game of volleyball. A standout volleyball player at Cardinal Gibbons High School in Lighthouse, Fla., Ei helped her team win three state volleyball championships, one on her birthday. She was three-time all-conference performer, earning honorable mention honors her sophomore and junior years, and first-team honors her senior campaign. She also garnered all-state honors her senior year.
After graduating, Ei attended Florida State University and Florida Atlantic University, however did not compete in volleyball. Following the 2001-02 academic year, Ei’s competitive spirit began to burn again, and she enrolled at Johnson County in the fall of 2002. Ei was one of seven highly touted newcomers expected to contribute in 2002. She played in all 28 matches for the Cavaliers that season. She finished the campaign with 120 digs, 52 kills and 10 services aces. Her efforts helped JCCC to a 14-14 mark. Ei capped the year by earning NJCAA Academic All-America honors, one of only 17 JCCC volleyball players in history to earn that status.
Ei is married Moulaye Niang, who was a three-year letter winner in basketball at the University of Kansas from 2002-2005. He was a student assistant coach for the Jayhawk last season.
