WVB: Jeff Vautrin named new head coach

NEWTON, Mass. – The Lasell University athletic department is proud to announce that Jeff Vautrin has been selected as the women's volleyball head coach, effective immediately.

A 2017 Lasell graduate and former standout for the Lasers men's volleyball team, Vautrin just finished his first year as the head coach of the men's team, leading the program to a 10-12 year. Prior to that, he served as an assistant for two years with the men's team and one year with the women's program.

"I couldn't be more pleased to announce that Jeff will be taking over the women's volleyball program," said director of athletics Kristy Walter. "With Jeff already running the men's team and doing such a great job in his first season, it was an easy decision to offer him the women's position. He's displayed an exceptional recruiting effort in just one year with the men's program by bringing in kids from all over like Hawaii, Chicago, and Las Vegas."

In addition to coaching at Lasell, Vautrin has experience coaching for the Acton-Boxborough boys' and girls' volleyball programs for the last two years, helping the teams win conference championships both seasons. He's been an assistant for the last few years at SMASH Volleyball Club which is one of the top junior programs in New England. Vautrin also has experience coaching for Spike and Serve Volleyball Club in Hawaii which is one of the top programs in the entire country.

Vautrin played three and a half seasons for the Lasers from 2014-17, missing the second half of the 2016 season with an injury that granted him an extra year due to a medical hardship. He became just the second player in program history to record 1,000 kills and finished with 1,064 career kills. Vautrin was a three-time selection to the All-Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Team, including twice on the First Team. He was named to the GNAC All-Tournament Team in 2014, and was a key player on the 2015 Laser squad that captured the GNAC championship and advanced to the NCAA Tournament.

A native of Chicopee, Mass., Vautrin was also the New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) Rookie of the Year and Tournament MVP his freshman year while playing at Elms College before transferring to Lasell.

"I am happy to be able to take over as head coach of the women's program," said Vautrin. "This program has always had a lot of talent and I am excited to get to work on helping them reach their potential."

The Laser women are coming off a 9-23 campaign in 2019, finishing with a 5-7 mark in the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC). Lasell earned a post-season berth for the 20th consecutive season, including all 13 years in the GNAC, and was eliminated in the quarterfinals by top-seeded Johnson & Wales University.

--30--