All Staff
Lance has been the Director for the CSRA Heat since 2005, and coaching with the Heat since 2007. He is a strong proponent of positive reinforcement in coaching, and a regular attendee at coaching clinics. He is active in the Palmetto Region of USAV, serving on the Executive Committee of the board of directors and the Tournament Committee. He also runs the regions ranking system.
In his life outside volleyball, Lance is a Fellow Process Control Engineer at the Savannah River Site. He earned his Bachelor degree in Chemical Engineering from Georgia Tech and his Masters from the University of Maryland. In his professional life, he manages multi-million dollar process control system development efforts.
Nicole was an all-state and all-region player at Augusta Prep. She has coached with Carolina Juniors Volleyball (Charlotte) and with the Rock Hill Volleyball Club. She is currently teaching English and coaching volleyball at Wardlaw Academy. 2012 will be her first season coaching with the CSRA Heat.
Lauren has been coaching with the CSRA Heat since 2011. She plays for the Augusta State University volleyball team.
Joey has been coaching with the CSRA Heat since 2011.
Coach Bland was a full scholarship UCLA volleyball player, and member of the 1993 Division I National Championship team. Coach Bland has 20+ years of volleyball experience and a coaching record at Augusta Prep of 173-35 (.832) in eight seasons, including 8 GISA Final Four appearances and GISA State Champions in 2006 & 2007. Coach Bland has been named the Columbia County News Times Coach of the Year from 2004-2007, and is the 2006 & 2007 GISA State Coach of the Year.
Although Rich won’t be coaching a team full-time this season, he will be around helping out.
Clay Bryant has worked Security at Savannah River Site for the past 20 years. His coaching experience includes the following:
Fox Creek High School Head Volleyball coach since 2010. Fox Creek High School Assistant Coach of Boy’s Basketball 2010-2011 season. Fox Creek High School Assistant Coach of Girl’s Basketball 2007,2008. Fox Creek High School Head Coach of Boy’s Basketball 2005. Clay has been coaching with the CSRA Heat since 2010. He is also a longtime outdoor volleyball player.
Samantha Bryant played volleyball and soccer at Fox Creek High School and for the CSRA Heat. She is seeking her degree in Sociology and a career in child advocacy. Her coaching experience includes the following: Fox Creek High School Offensive/Defensive Coordinator & Practice Coach 2011 and 2012 seasons and Fox Creek High School Assistant Coach 2010 season. Samantha has been coaching with the CSRA Heat since 2010.
Margie has coached with the CSRA Heat since 2010.
Julia’s experience playing volleyball includes playing for various schools teams from 5 through 12 grade. She also played 6 years of club volleyball, 5 years with the CSRA/Aiken Juniors and 1 year with Lookout Mountain (a club based in northern Georgia). She has one year of experience coaching recreational middle school volleyball. She is also a coach for rowing with the Augusta Juniors Program. She has coached with the CSRA Heat since 2010.
She has degrees in Ceramics and Materials Engineering degree from Clemson with a minor in Athletic Leadership.
Paul has been an active player in adult leagues for more than 10 years. He began coaching with the CSRA Heat since 2011.
Danielle rejoined the CSRA Heat in 2011 as the recruiting coordinator and coach. She works with several different teams to better know as many players as possible. Danielle has coached with A5, Club Performance, and the CSRA Heat.
Kathy has coached volleyball for 9 years as a Varsity and Middle school coach at Wardlaw Academy, and as a USAV coach for the CSRA Heat. Her teams have won 4 state championships and 6 consecutive region titles, and she has been named SCISA 1A Coach of the Year 4 times. She lives in Edgefield, SC with her husband Mark, and her 3 children Samantha, Laura, and Scott.
Coaching Experience
1 year head coach at Hephzibah High School (2012)
1 year assistant coach at Hephzibah High School (2011)
Playing Experience
2000-2004 Druid Hills High School varsity and JV
2005-2012 intramural teams
Other Information About Amanda
I am a teacher and coach at Hephzibah high school. I am extremely passionate about volleyball. One o my favorite aspects of coaching is building a team and working to instill a passion for volleyball in each of my players.
Kristen has been coaching with the CSRA Heat since 2011. She plays for the Augusta State University volleyball team.
Kari played 3 years Varsity Volleyball in High School and 1 year in college. She also played club volleyball through High School. She has 4 years coaching experience prior to coming the Heat: 2008- JV Volleyball at Pinckney High School, Pinckney, MI; 2009- Freshman Volleyball at Plymouth High School, Plymouth, MI; and 2009-2010- 14U Regional, Hurricanes Volleyball Club, Canton, MI. She has coached with the CSRA Heat since 2010.
Kim played several years for the CSRA Heat. She is now the JV coach at Greenbrier High School. She has been coaching with the CSRA Heat since 2010.
Adaire has been the head volleyball coach at Episcopal Day School since 2007 and a coach with the CSRA Heat since 2008
Alex played her high school volleyball with the Alleluia Community School, she played club for the CSRA Heat and Magnum volleyball clubs. She has been a coach with the CSRA Heat since 2011.
Kim Sams has been the Treasurer for the CSRA Heat since 2008.
Connie has more than 20 years of playing experience, including playing in coed leagues, women’s USAV, outdoors triples & doubles. She has coached at the high school level for 9 years and has coached Club Volleyball with the CSRA Heat since 2004. Her Club team placed 3rd in the Regional competition in ’05 and was the top Club team in the region in ‘06. She is a regional referee and has attended IMPACT training. She was an assistant coach on the Augusta Prep team which won the 2006 and 2007 Georgia Independent School Association state championship.
Steffanie has more than 15 years of playing experience, including playing in coed leagues, women’s USAV, outdoors triples & doubles. She has been coaching with the CSRA Heat since 2004.
Playing Experience6th grade through college. Played both junior college and NCAA Division II. Club Volleyball: Webfoot Juniors in Eugene, OR
Coaching Experience
ASU 2009-2010, Assistant Coach
Atomic Volleyball Club 2008- 12′s
Buz has been involved in volleyball for 28 years and involved with Junior National volleyball for 6 years as an official. He is also a college ref for the ACC and a former chair of officials for the Palmetto Region. He has coached with the CSRA Heat since 2006.
Krystin jonied the CSRA Heat staff during the 2011-2012 season. She is the sophomore setter for Augusta State University.
Bill has been involved with volleyball for 12 years. He and his wife, Christie, founded Brandon Sparks Volleyball. This USAV club near Tampa, FL grew to 10 teams in their three years as directors. After they moved to Augusta, the Warnkens coached Fox Creek High School to 3 straight South Carolina Region IV-A championships. Bill was chosen as the Region IV coach of the year in each of those seasons. For three years, Bill was the assistant coach for his daughters teams at Wardlaw Academy. Bill has coached since 2009 with the Heat.
Christie has been a volleyball player and coach for over 17 years, earning many honors as a player in high school and college in Western NY. As a coach in FL, she directed Brandon Sparks Volleyball, a USAV club with 10 teams in the Tampa area, as well as coaching two time AAAA Region Champions Armwood high school and three time Division Champions BSBA middle school. In the CSRA, Christie has helped coach Fox Creek High School to their first two A Region Championships, and Wardlaw Academy to four consecutive A SCISA State Championships. She has coached with the Heat since 2008.
Outside of volleyball, Christie teaches Literature and Spanish at Wardlaw Academy, and loves spending time with her husband Bill and daughters Katie and Beth.