Spartans Volleyball Coach Receives National Recognition

MOUNTAIN BROOK, AL — After completing her first year as the Spartans volleyball coach, Mountain Brook's Mattie Gardner was recognized recently on the Thirty Under 30 list by the American Volleyball Coaches Association.

Mountain Brook captured its third consecutive state volleyball championship this season, the Spartans' sixth title in eight years. Under Gardner's leadership, the Spartans finished the 2021 season with a 43-12 record.

The AVCA's Thirty Under 30 awards were created in 2009 to honor up-and-coming coaching talent at all levels of the sport. In 2016, the Thirty Under 30 awards program was expanded to include 30 high school coaches that are selected in the fall of each year.

In order to be considered for the honor, high school/interscholastic coaches meeting the proper age requirement must be an AVCA member and must be actively coaching at the high school/interscholastic level.

Before becoming head coach, Gardner had been with the Spartans’ volleyball program since 2017 and served as a varsity assistant. Gardner led Mountain Brook’s ninth-grade volleyball team to the Birmingham Metro championship in 2017 and guided the JV team to the most single-season wins in school history in 2018.

Gardner starred at Charlotte Country Day School in Charlotte, North Carolina, before earning a volleyball scholarship to Samford University. She played as a defensive specialist/libero for the Bulldogs from 2013-2017 and served as team captain in her junior and senior seasons. During her collegiate career, Samford won two Southern Conference championships and made two NCAA Tournament appearances.