Franklin fills out coaching staff for 2016
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Carson-Newman volleyball coach Dave Franklin has added three assistant coaches, Kyle Peck, Erin Harwood and Molly Locke, to comprise his first coaching staff for the 2016 campaign.
VIDEO: Dave Franklin Interview
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Carson-Newman volleyball coach Dave Franklin has added three assistant coaches, Kyle Peck, Erin Harwood and Molly Locke, to comprise his first coaching staff for the 2016 campaign.
"When you're putting together a staff you're trying to make sure that you are well-rounded and everyone has strengths to add," Franklin said. "I think we are well-rounded in the gym. I'll bring the energy and as a whole we are going to be able to give the girls a great experience."
Peck has been in the coaching ranks since the 2002 season when he got started at Division III Hiram College as an assistant coach. The 1998 graduate of West Alabama returned to his alma mater for two seasons beginning in 2003 as a graduate assistant coach. For the Tigers, he was involved in recruiting, the strength and training program and helped to organize practice and game strategies.
In 2005, Peck began a stretch of three seasons at the Division I level by working as an assistant at Central Florida where he aided the video analysis and scouting of opponents. Following one season, he made the move to Mercer where he combined his previous experiences with supervision of recruitment and fundamental coaching.
The Panama City, Fla. native picked up his first head coaching opportunity beginning in 2010 as the leader of the Gulf Coast State College. As the top man, he was in charge of volleyball operations including budgets, academics, recruiting, on-court and fundraising. Peck went 115-85 during his time winning the Panhandle Conference Championship twice and making two appearances in the FCSAA State Championship Tournament. He coached one All-American, Nicole Holton in 2014, while sending 13 players to the NCAA ranks.
"We just hired him recently," Franklin said. "He was a head coach before so from my standpoint he has a lot of knowledge and eyework that he can bring to the gym. I can trust that he is over there running that court and they are getting better."
Harwood joins the C-N program after finishing up her playing career at Fairmont State. For the Falcons, she finished third on her team with 303 kills while ranking second with 417 digs to lead her squad to a 25-8 record and a 14-2 conference finish, second in the Mountain East behind eventual National Champion Wheeling Jesuit. She was selected first-team All-MEC.
The Cary, N.C. native was named to the 2014 Mountain East All-Tournament Team during the same season as being a conference player of the week. At the end of the 2015-16 school year, Harwood was named the Fairmont State Female Athlete of the Year.
On her resume, Harwood has three years of coaching experience entering 2016. In May 2014, she began helping the Triangle Volleyball Club coordinate frequent camps and clinics, create lesson plans and assist in the drills. In Oct. 2015, she became the head coach of the Mountain Rage Volleyball Club implementing fundamental volleyball skills and competing in tournaments.
While at Fairmont State, she spent time as an intern for the volleyball program with her duties ranging from compiling statistics, recruiting, social media and creating practice plans.
In 2011-12, Harwood aided the volleyball Special Olympics in Raleigh, N.C. as an official and a coach and continued as a volunteer in 2015 when she helped Fairview Middle School.
"She was the first hire as a [graduate assistant]," Franklin said. "She had experience doing an internship with her former coach, helping with a lot of operational stuff. She wanted to get into coaching. She had a passion for learning and getting in the gym. It's a good program at Fairmont State and she has good knowledge that she can add."
Locke played just one season at Carson-Newman after spending her first three years of eligibility at Mercer, but made a huge dent on the record books as an Eagle. The College Grove, Tenn. native was named the Division II Outside Hitter of the Year by Hero Sports following her senior campaign.
Locke was the lone three-time South Atlantic Conference Player of the Week this season ranking second in the league in total points and total kills with 509.5 and 448 respectively. The Mercer transfer made the most of her lone season at Carson-Newman finishing with a team-leading 18 double-doubles, 27 matches with at least 10 kills and 21 contests with at least 10 digs. Locke failed to crest double-digits in kills just three times in her final 25 matches.
The second-team All-Southeast Region honoree is the first Eagle since Jenna Rust in 2003 to notch at least 400 kills and 400 digs in the same year with 448 kills and 454 digs on the year. The 448 kills are the seventh-most in a single year in Carson-Newman's history.
In her Carson-Newman debut, Locke racked up 27 kills and 20 digs against Quincy. The College Grove, Tenn. native became the first Carson-Newman player and fourth in the program's history to record a match with 20 kills and 20 digs since assistant coach Rachel Harper had 22 kills and 25 digs in a five-set match against Newberry on Oct. 19, 2012. She also became the first player with 25 or more kills since Carly Mozgai had 29 at Catawba on Nov. 12, 2010.
She was named Hero Sports's Division II Hero of the Week on Sept. 15 for her opening weekend efforts earning 50 percent of the vote edging out Tartleton State's Hailey Roberts by 21 votes. Ten players were nominated for the honor.
Locke tallied 25 kills and 27 digs in the SAC Quarterfinals against Anderson on Nov. 20 and 20 kills and 27 digs in the Southeast Region championship match against Lenoir-Rhyne on Dec. 6. The senior is the first Carson-Newman player to ever record multiple matches with 20 kills and 20 digs twice in the same season.
On top of being a first-team All-SAC pick, she was also a member of the 2015 All-Southeast Region Tournament team for her efforts in getting the Eagles their first-ever Southeast Region title.
In the summer of 2016, Locke participated for the United States for the Bring It Promotions Southeast Region team in a Global Challenge event held in Budapest, Hungary, Maribor, Slovenia, Pula, Croatia and Venice, Italy as she trekked through Europe.
"Molly has a really high IQ for the game," Franklin said. "One day if Molly decides to be a coach she's going to be really, really good at it. She sees the game very much like a coach so she just adds to our gym. She can see what's going on in the match that she can relay."
The quartet of coaches will be on the bench for the first match of the season against the 2015 National Champions, Wheeling Jesuit, Sept. 2 at 9 a.m.
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