COACHING STAFF
Motivators. Educators. Mentors.
GENNE BALETO
Seattle Volleyball Academy Director
U15 National Head Coach
Coach Genne started out playing volleyball as a Freshman at Rim of the World High School in California. During her Junior and Senior years, her team won the 1981 and 1982 California State Girls Volleyball Championships. She was named 1981 and 1982 MVP of the Sunkist League and was on the California State Girls Volleyball Regionals and All-State Tournament Teams both years. She also played for the Orange County Volleyball Club, where they were top finishers at the Junior National Open Volleyball Championships from 1981-1983.
From there, Coach Genne moved to Seattle, and played volleyball at the University of Washington from 1983-1986. She captained the team her last two years there and held numerous records. She held the record for Career and Season Service Aces for nearly 20 years and was honored to become a member of the Pac-10 All-Decade Team for 1980-1990.
After completing her college career, Coach Genne founded the Seattle Juniors Volleyball Club with her former University of Washington coaches. She helped bring a U18s team to a 6th-place finish in the 1989 Junior Nationals Open Championships.
From 1994-1997 Coach Genne was the club coach at Seattle University where her women’s team competed in and won numerous Evergreen Regional tournaments.
The 2021-22 indoor season was her official return to coaching where she took a SVA U12 team consisting of first year club volleyball players to a 17th place finish in a field of 33 teams. Coach Genne brings her leadership and organizational qualities to SVA as the Director of Seattle Volleyball Academy overseeing all aspects of the club.
JOE BALETO
Seattle Volleyball Academy
Director of Player Development
U17 National Head Coach
U16 Regional Head Coach
Coach Joe is one of the most well-known and well-respected coaches in the Northwest. He started out playing volleyball in 1981. His interest in the sport grew quickly, and within five years, he was playing for the Seattle Athletic Club, one of the top Evergreen Region Men’s Club Teams. During that time, he began coaching junior players, and helped bring a Seattle Juniors U18s team to a 6th-place finish in the 1989 Junior Nationals Open Championships.
Coach Joe began his collegiate coaching career at Seattle University and remained there from 1990-2000. He took his men’s club team to back-to-back Evergreen Regional Championships in 1998 and 1999. In 2000, Coach Joe joined the Seattle University Division II Women’s Volleyball Team as an Assistant Coach and remained there until 2007.
From 2010-2014, Coach Joe was the head volleyball coach at West Seattle High School where he coached both of his daughters.
In 2019 he became the assistant coach for beach volleyball at the University of Washington and coached through the 2020 season.
After leaving the University of Washington Coach Joe moved to Kennedy Catholic High School as the Girls' Volleyball JV Head Coach and Varsity Assistant Coach 2020-2023.
Coach Joe also brings many years of club volleyball coaching experience to Seattle Volleyball Academy. As the Director of Player Development, he will oversee all of the training throughout the Seattle Volleyball Academy program as well as head the U17 National team for the 2024-2025 season.
STEPHANIE PAPKE
Seattle Volleyball Academy Training/Setting Coach
U14 Development Head Coach
Coach Steph hailed from Auburn Washington where she helped lead the Auburn HS volleyball team to the State Tournament her senior year. Coach Papke attended Washington State University on a volleyball scholarship and became a four-year letter winner (1994-97), and was the first Cougar volleyball player to be voted by coaches to the All-Pac-10 team. She finished her career third in school history with 3,839 assists and was a three-time All-Pac-10 honoree. During her junior year she earned Pac-10 All-Academic First Team honors and was an All-District 8 selection as well. That same year, Coach Steph was named an AVCA All-American.
In 1998 she was a Pac-10 Conference Medal Winner and was WSU's nominee for NCAA Woman of the Year. In 2019 she was inducted into the Washington State University Hall of Fame.
Coach Steph has coached at the club, high school, and junior high levels, along with running volleyball camps and clinics, for over 25 years. She is currently the Skills Specialist Coach at Go Time Athletics, where she specializes in setting. Coach Steph is SVA’s U14 Development Head Coach and GTA skills coach..
Aki Petronijevic
Libero/DS Training Coach
SVA Floater Coach
U12 Dev. Assistant Coach
U14 Dev. Assistant Coach
Coach Aki was a standout libero at the University of Memphis (2011-2014) where she broke the school's all-time dig record finishing her career with 2,335 digs and three of the top four marks in school history. Coach Aki played in every set during her four years in the Blue and Gray and finished her career with 417 assists, 120 aces and 126 points.
In her senior year at Memphis Coach Aki was named to the American Athletic Conference Second -Team. First Memphis player to record 700 digs in a season, finishing with 717. Finished atop the American Athletic Conference in digs and digs/set with 717 and 5.39, respectively. Named the conference's defensive player of the week on two separate occasions and garnered honor roll honors. Named the AVSR Global Player of the Week two times, given weekly to the Top-International player in the country. Earned All-Tournament honors at the Maroon Classic. Posted double-digit digs in 30 matches and had more than 20 on 17 different occasions.
Coach Aki hails from Belgrade, Serbia where she graduated from the Prva Beogradska Gimnazija (First Gymnasium HS of Belgrade). A multi-sport athlete in Serbia she also competed in track and field and tennis.
Dylan Lavis
Coach Dylan hails from California where he attended and played varsity volleyball at North High School. in Torrance, CA. Coach Lavis went on to continue his volleyball career playing professionally in both beach and indoor volleyball in Den, Haag Netherlands.
Coach Lavis has over 12 years of combined club and high school volleyball coaching experience racking up over 600 wins. Coach Lavis has coached over 50 players that have continued their volleyball career playing in college on scholarship.
Coach Lavis brings a wealth of knowledge and creativity to Seattle Volleyball Academy helping our top 18U team compete at the highest level.
Seattle Volleyball Academy
U18 National Head Coach
Pearl Moore
Seattle Volleyball Academy
U18 Assistant Coach
Coach Pearl a 2021 graduate attended Kennedy High School in Burien, WA where she earned First Team All-State honors in 2020 as a setter and outside hitter and was named First Team All-League in 2019 and 2020. She was a two-year captain for the Lancers. A two sport athlete she also played basketball for the Lancers and earned a spot in the National Honors Society with a 3.5 GPA.
Coach Pearl continued her playing career in college switching to beach volleyball attending University of Alabama at Birmingham where she posted a 5-1 record over two seasons. In 2022 she transferred to CSU Bakersfield in California where she posted a 16-9 record on the year, pairing exclusively with Megan Gilbert. They accumulated 16 wins, a tie for seventh in CSUB single-season history and .640 win percentage ranks fourth. Went 3-0 against Cal Poly’s on the year, including a thrilling, three-set win at the Big West Championship.. Coach Pearl ended with a 36-29 college career record.
Coach Pearl graduated with a Psychology major and will be attending graduate school.
Coach Pearl brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the program and will help develop and prepare our college bound athletes for the next level.
TOM AMPARO
Coach Tom started playing volleyball in high school in Guam. He was part of a Championship Team his junior year and earned multiple All-Island Player honors during his high school tenure.
In 1999, Coach Tom was fortunate enough to be part of the Guam National Volleyball Team that competed in the South Pacific Games, held in Guam.
After high school, Coach Tom moved to the Pacific Northwest where he played for club teams in Corvallis and Seattle. He was part of two Evergreen Regional Championship teams and earned a 3rd place finish in the 2002 USAV National Championships.
Coach Tom’s experience includes coaching at Hazen and Kennedy Catholic High Schools, as well as over 10-years of coaching at the club level.
Carmen Tryka
Seattle Volleyball Academy
U16 National Assistant Coach
U14 Regional Head Coach
Coach Carmen grew up in San Diego, CA playing all sports which included volleyball, starting in the 5th grade. She played competitive softball through high school at Point Loma High School and was recruited by Division 1 schools, but realized that her passion was volleyball. During her Senior year in high school, she played varsity volleyball as a Libero and went on to play on an elite team at Coast VBC in San Diego. She later went on to college and continued playing at the University of San Diego for their competitive club team.
Coach Carmen comes to us with over 6 years of coaching experience with high school and club teams. Her coaching passions include mastering the fundamentals and improving a team’s overall volleyball IQ. She is excited to be a part of SVA and to continue to inspire and encourage players to become “volley-obsessed”.
Coach Junior has been a youth sports coach for over 25 years. He started his career coaching boys’ and girls’ recreation volleyball and basketball. Coach Junior then moved on to coaching AAU basketball and high school football.
He has spent the last 10 years coaching girls’ volleyball in middle school and on select club teams including being the assistant coach on the SVA U16 National team in the 2022-23 season helping them to a 3rd-place finish in the 2023 14th Annual Summer Soiree in California.
Coach Junior is excited to be a part of the coaching staff with Seattle Volleyball Academy, where he will be instrumental in helping players build confidence, as well as improve their volleyball skills in a positive, and highly competitive team atmosphere.
Jr. KITIONA
Seattle Volleyball Academy
U15 National Head Coach
Lauren Friis
Seattle Volleyball Academy
U17 Assistant Coach
Coach Lauren is a 2017 graduate from Auburn Mountainview HS where she excelled as a DS for the Lions. Coach Lauren continued her volleyball career at Westmont College in California where she played an important roll as a DS. In her Junior year she played in all 39 matches and in all 145 sets. She led the team and the GSAC with 721 digs, the second most ever by a Warrior in a single season, and the 10th most in the NAIA that year. She was fifth in the GSAC with 4.97 digs per set, which ranks as the seventh-best mark ever recorded by a Warrior in a single season. and third on the team with 184 assists. Tallied a .953 serve reception %. Added 19 service aces and four kills on the season. Coach Lauren ranked second in program history in digs per set (4.77) and third in digs (1,836) before her Westmont career was ended short by injury and Covid.
In her sophomore year she played in all 34 matches and tied for the team lead with 123 sets played as the team's libero. Led the team and second in the GSAC in digs (603), which ranks fourth all-time in a single season in Westmont history. Led the team and third in the GSAC in digs/game (5.24), the sixth most in a single season in program history. Led the team in serving pct. (.965), which ranks 15th in a single season in program history. Third on the team in assists (102) and service aces (20).
As a freshman she played in 38 matches mainly as the team's libero. and was named the GSAC Defender of the Week on October 9, 2017. Tallied 512 digs, 10th most in a single season in program history.
Katlynn Wakefield
Seattle Volleyball Academy
U16 Regional Assistant Coach
Coach Katlynn graduated in 2023 from Kennedy High School in Burien, WA where she played the Outside Hitter and Libero positions.. Coach Kate helped the Lancers make state runs 2 times during her 4 years as a Lancer. Coach Kate was also a standout student graduating with a 3.90 GPA.
Coach Kate continued her volleyball career at South Puget Sound CC in the NWAC where she played primarily as a Libero. She played in 30 matches and 106 sets over her 2 years as a Clipper playing in all 24 NwAC match-ups her freshman and sophmore years.,
She finished her 2 year Clipper career with 309 digs, and 498 reception attempts with only 12 reception errors.. She also contributed offensively with 111 kills and 136 points.
Coach Katlynn brings here experience to help our young high school players develop there game to prepare them for their high school varsity team.
Coach Kendall Bio Coming Soon - Graduated and played volleyball at Kennedy High School in Burien, WA where she played Middle Blocker and Outside Hitter.
Kendall Rohrs
Seattle Volleyball Academy
U15 National Assistant Coach
Coach Makaelah Bio Coming Soon - Graduated and played volleyball at Garfield HS.
Makaelah Smith
Seattle Volleyball Academy
U14 National Head Coach
Tyler Donlan
Seattle Volleyball Academy
U14 National Assistant Coach
Coach Tyler is a class of 2019 graduate of West Seattle HS where she was a 3 year varsity player. Standing at 6'1" Coach Tyler was a force at OH and Middle Blocker for West Seattle..
Coach Tyler was an All Metro 1st Team selection in both her Junior and Senior seasons as well as leading the team as a varsity captain. in both her Junior and Senior seasons for the Wildcats. Coach Tyler also earned Most Inspirational honors and was voted Best Offensive Player three times while earning 2 player of the match awards.
After graduating from West Seattle HS she continued her volleyball career at Bellevue College where she had limited playing time and opportunities due to Covid. She transferred to Washington State University where she earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Strategic Communications with a focus on Public Relations.
Coach Tyler is excited to proivide her vast knowledge of the game to our young athletes helping them better understand the game and teach what it takes to get prepared to enter their high school career.
Coach Alida Bio Coming Soon
Alida Muongchan
Seattle Volleyball Academy
U14 Regional Assistant Coach
Miles Fertel
Seattle Volleyball Academy
U12 Head Coach
Coach Miles grew up in sunny West Palm Beach Florida before attending Harvard University where he ran intramural sports program for Leverett House.
Coach Miles can be found playing Volleyball in Leagues and Tournaments nearly every day of the week in the Puget Sound area. When not playing/coaching volleyball, Coach Miles is a Software Engineer at Xbox, where he works on next generation gaming hardware. He has also worked as: a college Computer Science instructor, a Camp Counselor for 4 to 8 year olds, and even a NASA Engineer on the Mars Rover Project. But no matter what the project, his focus is on fostering a community based on collaboration and communication.
Coach Miles' main coaching goal is to develop a positive atmosphere in the gym which inspires perseverance and motivates players to reach their fullest potential. He is thrilled to be a part of the Seattle Volleyball Academy and can't wait to bring his energy and love for Volleyball to the club.
McQella Adams
Seattle Volleyball Academy
U12 Dev Head Coach
Coach McQella is a 2012 graduate from Doherty High School in Colorado Springs where she was a multisport athlete competing on the volleyball, and the swimming and diving team. She earned Colorado Springs Metro League honorable mention as a senior and helped her team become Metro League Champions. Was honored with the Most Improved award while at Doherty.
Coach McQella went on to play volleyball at Colorado College in Colorado Springs where in her freshman and Sophomore year she played in 17 matches for a total of 27 sets recording 10 blocks, nine kills, nine digs, four assists and an ace in her first 2 seasons as a Tiger. Registered a career-high six blocks against Division II Colorado State University-Pueblo and made an appearance against Knox College at the ACM Tournament.
In her Junior and Senior years, Coach McQella played in 37 matches for a total of 73 sets compiling 86 kills, 34 assists, 28 digs and 25 blocks. Had a career-high 10 kills against Austin College. Hit a career-best .833 attack percentage on five kills in six attempts against Centenary College and had a career-high four assists on two occasions and a career-high five digs against UC Santa Cruz. In her Senior year she was a team co-captain for the Tigers. and earned her undergraduate degree in biology & ecology from Colorado College.
Coach McQella is excited to have the opportunity to help develop our young players, providing the necessary foundation to build on their volleyball skills and understanding of the game.
BEN TURCINEC
SVA Assistant Coach
Coach Ben is attending and playing volleyball at Park University in Gilbert Arizona. In the 2023 season Coach Turcinec earned honorable mention in the Cal Pac as well as becoming a captain during his Sophomore year.
Coach Turcinec has played for both the Phoenix Ascension and Phoenix Valor which compete in the Semi Pro Volleyball League of America. Ben is heading to Europe this summer with Phoenix Ascension to be a part of a recruitment circuit for a chance to play professionally.
Coach Turcenic is one of our Go Time Athletics Volleyball Young Beginners Program instructors, adult training instructors and is one of our Volleyball Camp Coaches.
*Available winter break and summer
Coach Sharli was a standout player at Kennedy High School where she was an outside hitter on the indoor volleyball team where she helped the Kennedy Lancers to two state tournament appearances during her high school career.
Coach Sharli is currently playing volleyball on scholarship at Boise State University in their beach volleyball program.
Coach Sharli is also one of Go Time Athletics lead summer indoor and beach volleyball camp coaches and also assists with the adult training program working and training volleyball players on the fundamentals of the game.
SHARLI O'NEIL
SVA Assistant Coach
Interested in Coaching for Seattle Volleyball Academy?
Seattle Volleyball Academy is always looking for qualified coaches. If you are interested in coaching and sharing your love of the game with our next generation of players please reach out to us for an interview. We would love the opportunity to work with you.
Please email gen@gotimeathletics.com
Please provide your contact info and your volleyball playing/coaching experience.
We look forward to meeting you!