Coaching Staff

Kris Keller

Club Director, Head Coach, and Trainer

Kris Keller was “born” into volleyball. His father, Val, was the U.S. National Women’s and Men’s team coach, the National Technical Director of Canada, the National Technical Director of the USVBA, the author of one of the first books on volleyball, the author of the National Technical Journal, and traveled the world running coaching clinics for the IVBF (International Federation of Volleyball).

Kris played high school volleyball in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada and club ball for the Onion Patch Volleyball Club winning the Canadian Jr. National Championships two years in a row. After moving to Huntington Beach, CA, Kris joined the Tiger Volleyball Club, winning the U.S. Junior championship that year. Kris received a VB scholarship to the Division 1 University, SDSU, playing setter for three years, then moving to outside hitter during their rebuilding program his senior year. Kris has been coaching both Soccer and Volleyball for 15 years with eleven years in Volleyball starting with work at MVHS’s JV program in 2005. In 2005-2006, the volleyball club Vibe was established with its first 15-1 Power team. In the Fall of 2006, Kris accepted the position of JV coach at Bentley School in Lafayette. In 2007, he took over their women’s varsity program and has coached there year for six years. Currently, Kris was busy with running Vibe’s fall ball program with over 175 players ages 9-14.

Kris now runs club Vibe, coaches a couple of teams, runs many of the practices, organizes clinics, cheers for everyone, and just loves the game.

Ana Jakovljevic

Coach, 15s Elite, Tbd

Ana is Serbian born. She started playing at age 5, and at age 14, moved away from her family to train at her country’s national training center. She we recruited to play here in the states at D1 programs; Northwest College, then at Eastern Washington University. Some of her awards are listed below. Besides playing, she coached at CPA Volleyball club in Spokane and at various summer camps.

-2012 AVCA 2nd Team All-American/All 2 Year Colleges

-2012 NJCAA 2nd Team All-American

-2012 NJCAA Region IX Academic All-Region Team

-2012 Region IX All-Region Team

-2012 Region IX All-Tournament Team

-2012 Region IX Freshman of the Year

-2012 Region IX Player of the Year

-2012 WCCAC 1st Team All-Conference

-2012 WCCAC Player of the Year

-2013 AVCA 1st Team All-American/All 2 Year Colleges

-2013 NJCAA 1st Team All-American

-2013 NJCAA National All-Tournament Team

-2013 NJCAA Player of the Week (October 6, 2013)

-2013 Region IX All-Region Team

-2013 Region IX North All-Tournament Team

-2013 Region IX Player of the Year

-2013 WCCAC 1st Team All-Conference

-2013 WCCAC Player of the Year

-2013-14 NWC Outstanding Female Athlete

-NJCAA Volleyball Player of the Week (October 1, 2012)

-NJCAA Volleyball Player of the Week (September 3, 2012)

Ben Deane

Head Coach, 16s Power Elite, Walnut Creek

Ben was reintroduced to volleyball when his daughter was in Middle School. He was an Assistant Coach for the team, 3 years winning the age-group league tournament each year. When she moved on to Monte Vista in 2009, Ben became an assistant coach. After that season, Ben became more involved in the strength & conditioning side of the sport, developing and implementing a program for High School and Club players. In 2011, Ben was offered the opportunity to get back into coaching as the Women’s Junior Varsity coach at College Park High School in Pleasant Hill. After a brief time off, Ben returned again to coaching, this time at The Athenian School, first as the women’s junior varsity coach and then the head women’s varsity coach.

Ben’s coaching philosophy can be summed up in one word: respect. Respect for each other, the game, and those who coach and administer it. He strives to create a family atmosphere with all of his teams and believes nurturing this “team first” attitude is ultimately more important than wins and losses (though his teams certainly play to win!). Ben believes that it is critical for every player to see substantial playing time, as it is the best way to become better, more accomplished players.

Ben is an NFHS, USAV Impact and USAV CAP I Certified Volleyball Coach, as well as US Lacrosse Level 1 Certified Coach. He is also certified in the Positive Coaching Alliance (PCA) program and is Red Cross CPR & AED certified. Ben grew up in Danville, attended San Ramon Valley High School and coached his first youth sports team in 1981.

Cathy Estelle

16s Elite Assistant Coach 

Cathy is a newer coach with an extreme passion for volleyball and training girls to be their best. During her volleyball career, she played Division 1 as an OH for FDU and was a starter all four years and captain for three. Her accolades include #2 in serving aces in the country, several MVP awards, FDU college athlete Hall of Fame, and High school athlete Hall of Fame

Coach G

Head Coach, 14s Elite

This is coach G’s sixth year at Vibe. His passion for the game is very well known through his club, beach, summer clinics and fall ball coaching. He is tough, came from France, and knows how to make the girls learn and improve while having fun.

Coach Sylvia

13s Elite, Orinda

I live in the San Francisco Bay Area and coaching youth is my passion. I am a Youth Lifestyle Coach and Registered Dietitian. 

I am passionate about nutrition, athletics, and wellness. I grew up in Canada playing basketball, soccer and volleyball competitively throughout my youth and high school years. Volleyball of course stole my heart. I went on to play volleyball in College at the University of Western Ontario in Canada, where I completed a degree in Nutrition and Human Ecology, before a post-graduate internship at the University Health Network in Toronto. 

I joined the Vibe coaching staff in 2021. Prior to that I spent the last 10 years coaching youth of all ages while living in San Francisco.  

My strategies focus on skill building, physical conditioning, mental preparation and team building. My ultimate goal as a coach is to inspire a genuine love for the sport in each athlete. I firmly believe that when athletes truly enjoy what they do, their performance soars, and their journey becomes even more fulfilling. 

Ed Parker III

13s Power, Walnut Creek

Ed graduated from the University of San Francisco (USF) with a Masters degree in Sports Management and San Francisco State University (SFSU) with a Bachelors degree in Kinesiology.  While attending SFSU, Ed played for the Men’s club volleyball team as a Libero for four years.  He helped the team finish to 15th place in 2002 Division II and 9th place in 2003 Division I NIRSA Championships.  Upon graduating SFSU, he ended up coaching the men’s club team from 2005-2007.  While coaching the men’s club team at SFSU, Ed also began a successful 5-year career as the Women’s Volleyball Head Coach at City College of San Francisco (CCSF)(NJCAA) from 2004-2009.  Ed led the team to a Coast Conference Title in 2005, California State Regional Berth (NCJCC) in 2005 and 2008 and lastly, Ed earned the 2008 Coast Conference Coach of the Year.  Interwoven between his coaching at SFSU and CCSF, Ed did a 2-year stint from 2005-2007 as the girls 17’s Assistant Coach for SF Juniors Volleyball Club.  Towards the end of his appointment as CCSF, Ed became the Boys Club Director and 12’s, 13’s and 17’s Head Coach at 1st String Volleyball Club from 2008-2011.  Ed led the 12’s and 13’s teams to USA National Junior Olympic Bids.  Additionally, Ed was also appointed as the Assistant Volleyball Coach at SFSU’s Women’s Volleyball team from 2009-2011.  He helped lead the team to the 2009 Division II NCAA Regional Berth.  From there, Ed went on to Skyline College (NJCAA) and was the Women’s Volleyball Head Coach from 2011-2014.  Due to change in career path, Ed had to retire from coaching in 2014 to serve as a police officer.  To his surprise, his daughter loves to play volleyball and fast forward to 2022 he gladly took himself out of coaching retirement and volunteered to assist with the 12’s team here at Vibe volleyball club!

Jillian Schwartz

12s Power, Walnut Creek

This is Jillian’s first year coaching at Vibe. She was born and raised in Minnesota, then headed to Loyola University Chicago for college. She started playing volleyball in middle school, Junior Olympics in high school, and club in college. She moved to the Bay Area in 2018 and volleyball quickly became a way to connect with so many awesome people. Now, she plays indoor, grass, and sand more than ever! She started at Vibe coaching summer camps, and is looking forward to the club season.

Hannah Couch

12s Power, Orinda

This is Hannah’s second year coaching at Vibe. She is a division one beach volleyball player at Saint Mary’s College of California and played indoor volleyball throughout her entire career. Hannah has been playing volleyball her whole life and began to compete nationally at age 13. Before moving to California, Hannah was a coach for Dakine Volleyball Club for 2 years where she trained and coached athletes between ages 9-15. Hannah has found a lot of success in both the beach and indoor game being awarded honors like All-State 1st Team Libero, NPSL Defensive Player of the Year, and All-Tournament Offensive Player of the Year. Hannah could not be more exited to be joining the Vibe Coaching Staff, she is dedicated to encouraging and supporting each athlete take their game to the next level. 

Jeremy Wagner

14s Power, Orinda

Coach Wagner enters his 20th year of coaching women's competitive volleyball. He has coached at every level of the sport, including 4 years as an assistant coach at Dominican University of California (DU), 3 years as a head coach of a professional women's team, and too-numerous-to-count head coaching positions for middle school, high school, and club teams. Prior to coaching volleyball, he co-founded an e-commerce consulting firm that grew to over 1000 employees and served as its International Director of Recruiting. He retired from that position in 2000 to pursue his passion, coaching volleyball.

Coach Wagner recently moved from San Francisco to Lafayette and is now the head coach for the Stanley Middle School 8A team. In 2017 he founded an educational non-profit, Volleyball Academy of America, that sponsors volleyball players and teams at the professional level. Most recently, in 2019, both his men's and women's team won Gold Medals at the US Open Nationals in the Open (highest) Division. In 2019 he also served as the head coach for Claire Lillianthal Middle School and the Bay School Frosh team.

Although he's enjoyed great success coaching at the higher levels of the sport including league championships at DU, multiple medals at Nationals, numerous AVP players, All-Americans, and former Olympians on his rosters, his greatest accomplishment and enjoyment comes from the relationships he's built in the sport; working with legendary coaches and training young players that have developed skills, knowledge, and a passion for the game, and have gone on to play in college -- and become coaches themselves.

Mr. Wagner lives in Lafayette with his wife of 30 years, Brenda, who is earning her teaching credential at Los Perales Elementary School in Moraga, and his daughter, Anika, a freshman at Acalanes High School and an accomplished ballerina. Coach Wagner is delighted to join the Vibe team of coaches and looks forward to another great season of club volleyball.

Greg Gratteau

14s Power, Danville

Greg is in his third year coaching at Vibe. He started playing competitive club Volleyball in the seventh grade in southern California. He was a four year member of his high school’s varsity volleyball team and then awarded a scholarship to play at UCLA. Greg won numerous awards throughout his career including being named First Team ALL American his senior year in high school, was named to his high school’s Hall of Fame, and was a member of UCLA’s 1995 National Championship Team. His family relocated to Northern California late in 2015.

Gretta Kirkby

Coach, Summer program

Gretta is a soon-to-be senior on the Chico State volleyball team. She have been playing volleyball for 9 years now. She started playing club in 8th grade and continued to do so for a total of 5 years. She was on the varsity team at Albany High School for 4 years and earned MVP and first-team all league her senior year. She absolutely loves being on a team and forming connections with her teammates. Learning to work together and push each other is one of her favorite parts of volleyball. Volleyball has brought her so many opportunities, lifelong friendships, and joy. She love helping younger athletes play and improve. Volleyball changed her life and she is so grateful for every aspect of the sport and all it has taught her.

Ali Collins

Coach, Summer program

My name is Ali Collins I am currently a junior at Chico State University on the women’s volleyball team as a DS or a passing specialists. I have played volleyball for 13 years now and have loved every second of it. I have played every single position for volleyball from middle hitter to setter to libero. I not only have played indoor volleyball but have also played both grass and beach. I have been helping coach volleyball for 6 years now and love sharing my passion for volleyball. Volleyball has brought me my best friends, organizational skills and time management skills, it has showed me how to work through tough times and how to be a team leader. I was captain for three years for my high school volleyball team at Northgate and was captain for 4 years for club volleyball. Volleyball is an amazing sport and has changed my life for the better and i can’t wait to share that with other volleyball enthusiasts!

Mark Passalaequa

Returning soon

This is Mark’s 2nd season coaching at Vibe, and his 6th consecutive season coaching at Acalanes H.S.  He has been head coach for the Freshman girls team and currently is the head coach for the Varsity boys team.  He has also coached for Diablo Valley Volleyball Club, as well as for the Varsity boys team at Los Lomas HS. Before that, he enjoyed coaching his daughters in LMYA volleyball for over a decade. Mark didn’t play volleyball in high school as there was no boys’ volleyball team, but he was introduced to the game at Menlo College before enrolling at UCLA. Mark has played IFC volleyball, grass volleyball and was a player/coach for several corporate teams. Mark is a perpetual student of the game – always looking for and learning effective ways to help players reach their full potential.  If you remember John Wooden and his coaching philosophy, you will understand Mark’s style.  He is very focused on individual player development, and that by taking care of the little things, the big things will take care of themselves.  His objective is to create teams where each player has the potential for dramatic improvement and the ability to contribute to the team’s development and success as a whole;  as well as taking the skills they learned during the season, to the next level of their career.

Alicia Nicks

Tournament Support Coach

This will be Alicia’s 8th season coaching, the 6th with Vibe. With Vibe she has coached U-12, U-13 & U-14 and before that she was the assistant coach for Eclipse 13s. Alicia enjoys learning new and better ways to coach developing players and she really loves watching the players take to the court!

Alicia started playing volleyball at school in 6th grade, then both club and school teams through middle school and two years at Archbishop Mitty High School in San Jose. She played four years of club volleyball at Quicksilver, Vision for two seasons and Aloha.

Alicia is excited to be working with the Vibe family again and looking forward to an amazing season!

David Browne

Head Coach, 14s Power Orinda

Dave has more than 35 years experience playing volleyball, and started coaching youth volleyball in 2010. He has coached U11, U12, U13, U14 & U16 girls Power and Premier club and youth league teams, and U13, U14 & U15 boys club Power and middle school JV and Varsity teams. He is USAV IMPACT and CAP I certified, has attended Gold Medal Squared coaches training, and is Red Cross First Aid and CPR/AED certified.  He has volunteered as the Director of the LMYA (Lafayette-Moraga Youth Association) Select and Juniors ‘All-Star’ league since 2014.  In his free time, he plays volleyball open gym at Oakwood Athletic Club in Lafayette, and sand volleyball doubles at Larkey Park in Walnut Creek.

Dave’s coaching philosophy when working with young athletes is to develop both the physical and mental aspects of their game. In practices he builds on what girls have learned in clinics and their prior playing experience to develop their technique, point-winning strategies, and how to ‘play smart’, anticipate, and ‘read’ the game. He teaches systems and approaches that will benefit athletes as they progress through their club and school sports programs, encouraging them to think and understand why they are doing what they are doing. He focuses on teamwork and sportsmanship, teaching athletes the importance of communication, support for each other, and respect for teammates, officials, and opponents. He stresses the importance of putting forth your best effort at all times and playing to win, along with the perspectives that winning isn’t everything and failure is an opportunity for learning and improving. Beyond pure skill and team development, his ultimate goals are to help athletes further develop their love for the game and have fun along the way!