QUINCY, Ill. – Quincy University has announced today (May 6) that Gavin Mueller is stepping down as the head men's volleyball coach, and Caren Kemner will be hired on as his replacement.
Mueller has been a part of the QU men's volleyball program since he played for the Hawks' men's volleyball team from 2010-2015. Two years later, in 2017, he was brought in as a graduate assistant coach before becoming the head coach before the 2018 season.
"It's been a fun ride. I loved my time at QU, I loved my teammates, my players, my coaches, and I am thankful for the experience. I'd like to thank Marty (Bell) for giving me my first head coaching opportunity. I want to thank Tom Ryan, Garcia Ramser, Tim Hill, and Denny Sinnock for all that they did to help me. And I'd like to thank Karen Rabe and Caren Kemner for introducing me to coaching," said Mueller when reflecting upon his time with Quincy University.
"Those two pulled me into the world of coaching. I started my coaching career teaching 12 year-olds the game thanks to a push from Karen (Rabe) and Caren (Kemner). If it wasn't for them, I probably would have never had this opportunity."
Mueller served the last four seasons as head coach, and said he is proud of what he did with the program. "In the beginning, I was thrown to the wolves a little bit, but with help and advice along the way, I grasped the situation. Coming from a GA who was thrust into a head coaching role halfway through my master's, I feel like I've learned a lot of the in's and out's that come with being a head coach," Mueller said.
And with those in's and out's comes things that he'll miss.
"I'll miss the guys. Just being with them, practicing everyday, helping them get better, I'll miss that the most," Mueller said about the comraderie between himself and the players he recruited to play for QU.
But, being replaced is never easy, and it's always somewhat awkward, but both Gavin Mueller and new head men's volleyball coach, Caren Kemner, have a special relationship that has made this a unique transition.
"We have worked together for many years, and we will always stay in touch. I look forward and am excited for where she (Kemner) will take this program."
Kemner is a Quincy native, and she played volleyball and softball for two years at the University of Arizona before joining the U.S. National Volleyball Team in 1985. She competed in three consecutive Olympic Games and helped the United States capture the bronze medal in 1992 in Barcelona. She competed for the USA for 15 years, and she was considered one of the best female volleyball players during her career. Kemner was a six-time recipient of United States Olympic Committee Female Athlete of the Year, five-time recipient of the Team USA Volleyball Most Valuable Player Award, and named the FIVA Best Female Volleyball Player of the World She also won the Volleyball World Cup Most Valuable Player.
"Caren is the right person to lead our men's volleyball program into a successful new era. She knows the challenges the competition presents in the conference we compete in," said QU's new athletic director, Josh Rabe. "Her knowledge, connections, and expectations are unmatched in the volleyball world. Any time you can get a former Olympic medalist as a resource to advance a collegiate athletic program, it is a great day."
When Kemner returned home to Quincy to care for her elderly parents, she opened a volleyball club in Quincy and coached for two seasons at Quincy Notre Dame High School. In 2011, she accepted the position as women's volleyball head coach at Culver-Stockton. She transitioned to the men's volleyball program as head coach in 2017. In her four seasons as the men's head coach, Kemner's teams have produced 11 all-conference players, including two first-team and two-second team selections, six scholar-athletes, and one NAIA first-team All-American.
"Having grown up across the street from Quincy University, it goes without saying that this opportunity to return to QU is in so many ways a homecoming," said Kemner. "My life has always been about journeys, and with this step, to be a part of the Hawk family, I have come full circle."
