SEATTLE – Hailey Gaines keeps finding good reasons to stay connected with the Seattle Pacific volleyball team.
 
In 2018, she came here from Concordia Irvine as a graduate student with one year of eligibility remaining – and went on to earn the Great Northwest Athletic Conference's Newcomer of the Year award.
 
Last year, while finishing up her master's in industrial organizational psychology, she served as a grad assistant  on head coach Abbie Wright's staff.
 
Now, with her studies complete, Gaines is taking another step up, being named as Wright's lead assistant coach.
 
 

"I didn't really plan on being a grad assistant – I kept getting pulled back to the sport," Gaines said. "The part that I loved was building relationships with the girls, and that kind of hooked me (on coaching). I realized it definitely is a privilege, not only on the court, but I love the outside aspects of it, as well."
 
The lead assistant position opened in January when Haley Doerfler accepted the head coaching position at Linfield University in McMinnville, Ore.
 
 

"Hailey has a real heart for people and connecting with others," Wright said. "She's a unique and rare blend of administrative skills, X's and O's, and relating to the players – it's a trifecta that's hard to find. She does a great job of pursuing our athletes and getting to know them in a way that is going to give them a world-class experience."
 
During her one season on the court for the Falcons, Gaines, who played on the right side, hit .210 with 271 kills. She also had 82 total blocks and delivered 29 service aces. Her kills, blocks and aces totals all were second-highest on the team.
 
Gaines said that serving as a grad assistant last year with many of the players who had been on the court with her just a few months earlier took some mental adjustment on her part.
 
"At first, I was a little bit uncertain how to give feedback and how to toe that line," she said. "These were my teammates not so long ago. The thing I learned is that there's a flip between player and coach. As a player, you say, 'You've got the next one.' As a coach, it has to be more actionable, so you say, 'This is how you get the next one.'

Added Wright, "She's very detail-oriented. For someone who is highly exceptional with people, they're often not as good on the day-to-day tasks. But she excels in filling those gaps for me."