LAS VEGAS (UNLVRebels.com) - The UNLV volleyball team announced a new member of their staff on Monday afternoon, hiring Matt Kuelpman as the team's new Assistant Coach.
"Everyone I spoke with about Matt consistently highlighted three qualities: he is a person of tremendous character, a true professional with a strong work ethic and someone whose passion for volleyball runs deep," said head coach Malia Shoji. "Matt has been mentored by coaches I deeply respect, and he brings a high level of knowledge and experience that aligns perfectly with what we're teaching in the gym and how we want to compete and win. He also has great respect for what we've built over the past few years and immediately bought into the vision for where we want to take UNLV volleyball next. I couldn't be more excited about the future of our program."
In Kuelpman's first season as an assistant coach and offensive coordinator in 2023, the Lobos averaged 12.26 kills per set, with Uxue Guereca (393 kills) and Kaitlynn Biassou (382 kills) both recording nearly 400 kills each en route to All-MW honors. UNM finished tied for fourth in the conference standings for the Lobos' third-straight MW Tournament appearance, outlasting UNLV in five sets in the first round to advance to the conference semis.
Kuelpman came to New Mexico from Weber State, where he was the assistant coach for the past four seasons and also served as the recruiting coordinator for its 2023 and 2025 classes. During his time with the Wildcats, his responsibilities included coaching the back row defense and coordinating the offense during matches, coaching the team's blocking, serving, and defensive strategies, and oversaw the team's travel and camps. While he was with Weber State, the Wildcats improved in digs per set, kills per set and won the Big Sky Championship for the second time in program history. In 2019, Weber State competed in the NIVC tournament and advanced to the quarterfinals after beating MW opponents Boise State and Wyoming.
Weber State had its best season in school history in 2020, going 15-1 and won the first-ever Big Sky regular season title in program history and later won the first conference tournament championship since 1988. The Wildcats repeated as conference champions in 2021, and from 2019 through 2021, the Wildcats won 25-straight matches at home for the longest home winning streak in the nation.
