After three consecutive seasons under .500, former Lions volleyball Head Coach Julie Langford is out and new Head Coach Geno Frugoli is in. Frugoli was appointed the position on Feb. 21 with subject to approval from the University of Louisiana Board of Supervisors.

“We feel like he’ll bring not only expertise, but enthusiasm to our volleyball program,” said Athletic Director Bart Bellairs.

Frugoli takes over a Lions program that finished last season 10-23, going 1-5 in the Southland Conference and finishing the season on an 11 game losing streak. Frugoli joins Assistant Coach Priscilla Morgan and a roster that returns 11 players from last year’s 14-woman roster.

“Coach Morgan and I have really bonded and I feel like we’re on the same page, and the girls are excited about learning something new,” said Frugoli.

“Obviously what they were doing before wasn’t working, so they needed to go back to the drawing board with me, get excited about it and really believe in it, and I think were going through that process right now and we’re already seeing dividend.”

Frugoli comes from the University of Missouri- Kansas City (UMKC) where he spent four seasons and, overtime, built the program into a competitor in the Summit League. In his third season with the program, Frugoli coached the Kangaroos to 15 wins, the third most in school history and tying the all-time wins mark in league play with 10 victories.

Prior to his career at UMKC, Frugoli served as the top assistant at Baylor and chief recruiter under Head Coach Jim Barnes. In his role as chief recruiter, Frugoli helped the Bears land the No 1. Player in the state of Texas bringing in the No. 16 ranked recruiting class in the country.

“It was a good experience to be under someone that was so organized and ran such a good clean program, because when I became a head coach I was ready,” said Frugoli

Frugoli has impacted his past teams on the court as well as the classroom and expects to do the same with the Lions.

“I think it’s extremely important to have that balance, and we’re going to continue to recruit kids who make good grades,” said Frugoli.

While at Baylor and UMKC, Frugoli’s teams thrived in the classrooms, earning several academic recognitions with cumulative team GPA’s of 3.3. In three seasons at UMKC, Frugoli saw 32 of his student-athletes named to the Summit League all Academic Team. In 2009, Frugoli’s team was one of 49 teams in the nation recognized as part of the NCAA’s academic reform program, which is a program that recognizes colleges and universities academic success and graduation of student-athletes.

“I think that if you give two-way feedback and you teach the technique and the concept and they really believe it then they’re going to learn a lot,” said Frugoli.

As the Lions prepare for the 2011 season next fall, Frugoli and his staff are really excited about the season. Frugoli explained how he wants to implement some changes, like getting students closer to the action on the court, bringing more excitement into the arena. Frugoli mentioned how he is most excited about the first game in the Univeristy Center.

“I think that is when I will become an official Lion,” said Frugoli.

For more information on Lion’s Volleyball and coach Geno Frugoli visit www.lionsports.net.