2010 MAAC Coach of the Year
Mark Jones enters his eighth season as Manhattan’s head volleyball coach, and his sixth in a full-time capacity. Under his leadership, the Jaspers have won 20 matches four times and made four appearances in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Tournament. One of just two coaches in program history with 100 career wins, Jones has an overall record of 120-107.
Jones led Manhattan to its third consecutive 20-win season in 2015, the first time in program history that has occurred. The Jaspers picked up their 20th victory over Rider in the first round of the MAAC Tournament on Nov. 20. The following day in the semifinals, Manhattan battled back from a 2-0 deficit before losing in five sets to eventual MAAC champion Fairfield. It was the team’s third straight appearance in the MAAC semifinals.
Three different Manhattan players ranked among the top 12 nationally in service aces in 2015. As a team, the Jaspers led the nation with 242 aces and finished second overall with 1.91 aces per set. Manhattan also ended up ninth nationally in digs (2186).
In 2014, he guided the Jaspers to a 21-13 record at the No. 3 seed in the MAAC Tournament. Manhattan equaled a program record with 13 conference victories, including its first-ever win at Fairfield. With a five-set victory over Niagara in the quarterfinals of the MAAC Tournament on Nov. 20, 2014, Jones joined Pete Volkert as the only coaches in program history with 100 victories.
That season, the Jaspers set a school record with 2351 digs, which was third-most in the nation. Manhattan, which led the NCAA in digs per set for a few weeks during the season, ended the year ranked sixth with 17.95 digs per set. In addition, the Jaspers were fourth nationally with 5018 attack attempts.
Jones led the Jaspers to a school-record 13 MAAC victories in 2013, as Manhattan qualified for a four-team MAAC Tournament for the first time in 10 years. The Jaspers defeated every team in the MAAC for the first time in 2013. Manhattan equaled the best start to conference play in program history, going 8-1 in its first nine MAAC contests, including a seven-match conference winning streak from Sept. 25-Oct. 19. The Jaspers picked up their school-record 12th MAAC victory at Rider on Nov. 6, then secured their place in the postseason by taking a set off Iona in the season finale on Nov. 16.
It marked the first time the Jaspers reached a MAAC Tournament that featured only four teams since 2003. Manhattan drew defending MAAC champion Fairfield in the semifinals and won the first set against the top-seeded Stags before falling in four. Overall, Manhattan finished the 2013 campaign with a 20-13 record, its first 20-win season since 2010.
In 2010, Jones was named Anaconda Sports MAAC Coach of the Year after leading the Jaspers to a then-school-record 11 MAAC victories and their first 20-win season in seven years. Manhattan followed that up with a 16-15 campaign in 2011, marking the program’s first back-to-back winning seasons since 2002-03.
Manhattan posted an 8-23 record in 2009, Jones’ first season at the helm, before notching a 20-14 mark during the 2010 campaign. It was Manhattan’s first winning season since 2005 and first 20-win campaign since 2003. The Jaspers were picked to finish ninth in the MAAC Preseason Poll, but ended up tied for third place with an 11-7 conference record. In 2010, the Jaspers snapped an 11-match losing streak against Fairfield and swept the season series with Siena for the first time in program history. Manhattan also put together a pair of six-match winning streaks and went an impressive 7-2 in five-set matches in 2010.
After going 16-15 in 2011, the Jaspers finished the 2012 season with an overall record of 15-15. It was Manhattan’s third straight season going .500 or better, which hadn’t happened since a four-year stretch from 1994-97. The Jaspers went 10-8 in conference play in 2012, the second time in three years that they notched double-digit MAAC wins.
While at Manhattan, Jones has coached one MAAC Player of the Year (Malia McGuinness, 2014), one MAAC Rookie of the Year (Sydney Volovski, 2012), and three MAAC All-Tournament Team members (Ellie Wiekamp, 2013; Claire Van Dyk, 2014; Milena Janjusevic, 2015). In addition, 10 different Jaspers have earned All-MAAC recognition at least once since 2010. Manhattan has also had 35 MAAC All-Academic selections and two Academic All-District honorees during Jones’ tenure.
Jones came to Riverdale after a two-year stint as the top assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at the University of Maine. Under his guidance, the Black Bears qualified for the America East Conference Tournament in 2008. Prior to his time at Maine, Jones spent two seasons as an assistant at Tennessee State University. The Tigers posted back-to-back 20-win seasons and won the Ohio Valley Conference Championship in 2005. Tennessee State went 26-6 against OVC opponents during his two seasons in Nashville.
He began his coaching career at his alma mater, Washington State, during the 1994-95 athletic season. He served as a volunteer assistant with the Cougars’ women’s program during the fall and was head coach of the men’s squad in the spring. The women’s team qualified for the NCAA Tournament and finished the year ranked in the Top 25 during each of his four seasons, including an appearance in the regional finals in 1996. Washington State went 27-6 that season, finishing second in the Pac-10 and earning a year-end national ranking of No. 7.
The Washington State men’s team went 99-22 during his four seasons at the helm. Jones’ teams went 46-4 in the Pacific Coast Intercollegiate Volleyball Association, including consecutive 13-0 campaigns in 1997-98. Jones led the Cougars to four straight PIVA championships and a third-place finish in the 1998 National Collegiate Volleyball Championships.
Following one season as the top assistant with Northwestern State’s women’s program in 1998, Jones moved on to William Woods University, where he was the top assistant with both the men’s and women’s programs in 1999-2000. He was named head coach of both programs in August 2000. The women’s team won at least 18 matches and finished third in the America Midwest Conference during each of his three seasons at the helm.
After going 13-13 during his first season as mentor of the Owls’ men’s team, Jones was named Mid-America Men’s Volleyball Intercollegiate Conference Coach of the Year in 2002. That season, he led William Woods to a 31-4 record and the NAIA National Championship. His 2003 squad finished the season ranked fifth in the nation with an 18-11 overall record. Overall, Jones went 62-28 with the William Woods men’s team and 57-49 with the women’s program.
A 1995 graduate of Washington State, Jones won four varsity letters as a member of the Cougars’ men’s volleyball team. He received master’s degrees from William Woods in 2001 and Tennessee State in 2007.
