July 24, 2003

Beaumont, Texas - April Harriman, a 2000 graduate of the University of Memphis, has been named assistant volleyball coach at Lamar University, announced Monday by head coach Fiona Bolten-Simmons. Bolten-Simmons was an assistant coach under current Tiger Head Coach Carrie Yerty from 1999-2001. In her first year at Lamar, Bolten guided the Cardinals to a 26-7 mark and an appearance in the finals of the Southland Conference Tournament.

"I'm excited about April joining our staff," Bolten-Simmons said of the hire. "She brings Division I experience to the program, both as a coach and as a player. Her competitive attitude and devoted work ethic will help us to continue to recruit top student-athletes and develop them as players."

Harriman joins the Lady Cardinals staff after spending the past two seasons at Ohio University. She spent the first year as a volunteer assistant before joining the staff in a full-time capacity during the 2002 season. Prior to her time at Ohio, Harriman coached numerous club teams and served as an instructor at several university camps.

As a student-athlete Harriman garnered countless all-tournament team honors as an outside hitter at the University of Memphis. As a senior, she led the team in kills and ranked seventh in Conference USA with 4.05 kills per game.

Harriman was an academic standout while at Memphis, receiving the Elma Roane Award as the Tigers' top female athlete in addition to the Female Student-Athlete of The Year award. She hauled in Second Team Academic All-American honors and was an eight-time member of the Dean's List.

"I'm excited to take on a new challenge and help the program continue to grow and succeed," Harriman said.

Harriman's duties will include assisting with recruiting, practice preparation and day-to-day operations of the volleyball program.

"We're fortunate to have April here at Lamar," Bolten-Simmons said. "She will be a great asset to Lady Cardinal Volleyball."

Harriman's 494 kills her senior season still ranks as the sixth-best single season kill mark in Tiger history, and her 1,317 attempts is the third-highest single season mark. Harriman was just the third Tiger student-athlete to earn Verizon Academic All-America honors with her second team honors in 2000.