LAS VEGAS (UNLVRebels.com) - New UNLV women's soccer head coach Jenny Ruiz-Williams has completed her coaching staff, Ruiz-Williams announced Friday. Former Rebel standout Jenna Olson (formerly Huff), a three-time Mountain West All-Conference goalkeeper from 2002-2005, and Kayley Sullivan, a volunteer assistant coach for the 2019 National Champion Stanford Cardinal, join Ruiz-Williams at UNLV.

"It is truly an honor to work with this staff," said Ruiz-Williams. "Jenna and Kayley will add to this program immediately and I am excited to see the positive impact that they will have on this group of young women that we serve. This spring we will be identifying and building leaders, setting the culture and defending it. Both Jenna and Kayley are strong role models aligned with our vision and core values and they are ready to pull up their sleeves and get to work."

Olson and Ruiz-Williams, the first former women's player to return to the program as head coach, were UNLV teammates for three seasons from 2002-2004, helping the Rebels earn their first ever Mountain West regular season championship and at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament in 2004. As a senior the following year in 2005, Olson led UNLV to it first Mountain West tournament championship and second consecutive NCAA appearance, while becoming the first three-time all-conference goalkeeper in league history.

Originally from Huntington Beach, California, Olson is arguably the best keeper in UNLV history as she still holds several marks in the record book including most career shutouts (26), career goals-against-average (0.90) and season goals against average (0.34 in 2005). After finishing her degree in kinesiology/health sciences at UNLV in 2006, Olson served as an assistant coach at the University of Houston for five years from 2007 through 2012. Remaining in the Houston area, Olson has spent the past seven years at the high school and junior high levels, where she has held several different titles including physical education/health teacher, varsity soccer coach and athletic director.

"Jenna is one of the most elite goalkeepers that I have ever played with. I immediately targeted her as someone that I needed on this staff. " said Ruiz-Williams. "She left her mark on this program as a player and as a person and she will undoubtedly continue to touch it as a coach. Along with her multiple years of college coaching, her background in education and her stellar playing career, Jenna brings a passion for UNLV women's soccer, which she will instill on this program daily."

With both Ruiz-Williams and Olson returning to UNLV, this marks just the fourth time in program history two former players will serve together on the same staff.

Sullivan comes to Las Vegas with a wealth of high caliber experience on a national stage as she spent that last two seasons as a volunteer assistant coach for the Stanford Cardinal, who are the reigning NCAA National Champions after their title win in the 2019 Women's College Cup. During her time in Palo Alto, the Cardinal went 45-2-2 overall and undefeated in league play en route to back-to-back Pac-12 Championships and two straight College Cup appearances in 2018 and 2019. She helped coach seven All-Americans and a two-time Hermann Trophy award winner in Catarina Macario. While in Palo Alto, Sullivan also served as the Director of Community Programs for the Mountain View Los Altos club - one of the top club programs in the country.

Prior to her stint at Stanford, Sullivan spent the 2017-18 season coaching for the Washington Spirit Development Academy in Virginia, also having spent 10 years coaching U4-U8 players in McLean, Virginia. A native of Lorton, Virginia, Sullivan played four seasons at George Washington from 2009-12, graduating with a degree in psychology and a minor in mind-brain studies after serving as captain during her senior season. Outside of soccer, Sullivan has spent time researching with the American Psychological Association on social-emotional development as well as teaching for the Knowledge is Power Program (KIPP) in Washington D.C. – she is certified in early childhood education as well as teaching English as a foreign language.

"There is so much to get excited about with Kayley, from coming off of a National Championship season to her high level playing experience, but what attracted me to her the most was her ability to shine," said Ruiz-Williams. "You feel inspired and empowered from just a few moments with her - something that will be contagious in this program. She thinks outside the box and has a relentless joy about her. I'm thrilled to have her aboard."

-UNLV-