Wisconsin volleyball: Kelly Sheffield announces new volunteer assistant coach

The Wisconsin Badgers volleyball team added a new member to its coaching staff on Tuesday. Head coach Kelly Sheffield announced that Mackenzie Long will join the Badgers volleyball team this fall as the team’s volunteer assistant coach. Long, who is orginally from Walworth, has been coaching volleyball since 2015.

Here is the full press release from the UW Athletic Department:

MADISON, Wis. – Head coach Kelly Sheffield has announced that Mackenzie Long will join the Badger volleyball team this fall as the team’s volunteer assistant coach. A native of Walworth, Wisconsin, Long comes to Wisconsin after serving as an assistant coach Missouri S&T the last two seasons.

“I am unbelievably pumped to join Kelly, this staff, and this team this season,” said Long. “The standard that this program has set is in a league of its own and it has stemmed from the culture that Kelly has instilled in the staff, past players, and current players. I’m very grateful for this opportunity from Kelly, Brittany, Gary and the rest of the UW staff to learn from this top-notch program. Go Badgers!”

In her two seasons at Missouri S&T, Long aided the Miners to a 36-25 record, including a 21-10 mark in 2019 to qualify for the Great Lakes Volleyball Conference tournament. S&T had one All-GLVC first-team honoree and two second-team all-conference selections during her tenure.

“I’ve known Mackenzie for a few years,” Sheffield said. “She is eager to learn, has great energy, and has a passion for the game. She wants to be a great coach and I’m looking forward to having her on staff.”

Prior to joining the Miners, Long was a member of the coaching staff at High Performance STL Volleyball Club in St. Louis, since 2015. She served as an assistant coach from 2015-17 before being promoted to head coach prior to the start of the 2017-18 season, leading her Illinois High Performance 18 Elite team to a third-place national tournament finish.

A libero, Long was a four-year starter at Saint Louis University. She was selected to the Atlantic 10 Conference Tournament All-Championship Team in 2016. Long was also a two-time A10 Defensive Player of the Week, and concluded her Billiken career ranking among the program’s top 20 career leaders in service aces with 130 and in digs with 1,441. She earned her bachelor’s degree in sports business from SLU in 2018.

Long was a two-time all-state honorable mention honoree at Big Foot High School. She was a two-time Rock Valley Conference Player of the Year and two-time team most valuable player. A three-time first-team all-conference selection, Long was also a two-time letter winner in basketball and member of the National Honor Society. She competed for Club Fusion and helped lead her club team to consecutive AAU national championships in 2012 and 2013.