Leah Michele Johnson (born July 20, 1981) is an American former volleyball player and current head coach for the

Michigan State Spartans women's volleyball The Michigan State Spartans women's volleyball team was founded in 1972. They play home matches at the Breslin Center, which they moved to in 2022 after playing at Jenison Fieldhouse. History Carol Davis era Carol Davis was the first Michigan ...

team.

Personal life

Johnson is a native of

Fair Grove, Missouri Fair Grove is a city in Greene County, Missouri, Greene County, Missouri, United States. The population was 1,582 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is part of the Springfield, Missouri Springfield, Missouri Metropolitan Area, Metro ...

. She played volleyball at her high school Marshfield High School. She played collegiately for

Southwest Missouri State University Missouri State University (MSU or MO State), formerly Southwest Missouri State University, is a public university in Springfield, Missouri. Founded in 1905 as the Fourth District Normal School, it is the state's second largest university by enr ...

. She has a bachelor's degree in Spanish and master's degree in International Affairs and Administration, both from Missouri State. She is married to A.J. Weissler and the couple has two children, Edith and PJ.

Playing career

Johnson played volleyball for

from 2000–2003. Johnson served as a team captain and helped the team to four-straight seasons with 20 or more wins and a

Missouri Valley Conference The Missouri Valley Conference (also called MVC or simply "The Valley") is the third-oldest collegiate athletic conference in the United States. The conference's members are primarily located in the midwest. History The MVC was established ...

regular season title in 2003. She ranks among Missouri State's all-time and single-season digs leaders. In 2019, along with her former teammates and coach she was inducted into the

Missouri Sports Hall of Fame The Missouri Sports Hall of Fame is located in Springfield, Missouri, United States. Founded in 1994 by Springfield businessman John Q. Hammons, the Hall of Fame is housed in a two-story, 32,000-square-foot building. On display are more than 4,0 ...

Head coaching career

Johnson served several assistant coach roles before becoming a head coach in 2011. Notably, she was an assistant coach in 2008 and 2009 at her alma mater Missouri State. During the 2008 season, she helped the team to a conference tournament title and NCAA Tournament appearance. Missouri State had an overall record of 44-23 mark during her two seasons as an assistant coach. In 2010, she joined Notre Dame's coaching staff as a volunteer assistant. Some of her duties included executing practice plans, directing position-specific film sessions, scouting opponents, and tracking opponents’ offense during matches.

SIU Edwardsville

Johnson was named the head coach of SIU Edwardsville volleyball program in 2011. At that time, they were an

NCAA Division II NCAA Division II (D-II) is an intermediate-level division of competition in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). It offers an alternative to both the larger and better-funded Division I and to the scholarship-free environmen ...

program with a low win record. By 2016, SIU Edwardsville completed its transition to

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest level of College athletics, intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major ...

. She was named the 2016

Ohio Valley Conference The Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference which operates in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern and Southeastern United States, Southeastern United States. It participates in NCAA Divisi ...

Coach of the Year after leading the team to the conference tournament championship match for the second time in program history. In 2016, the program had 22 Division I wins, its highest ever in program history. In their first season finishing above .500 at the Division I level, the Cougars went 22-8, appearing in the OVC championship for only the second time in program history.

Illinois State

Johnson was named the women's volleyball head coach at Illinois State in 2017. Johnson's overall record at Illinois State was 104-53 record and included five NCAA postseason appearances, including four straight NCAA Tournaments, marking the longest streak at ISU in nearly four decades (1982-85). Johnson was named the AVCA North Region Coach of the Year after coaching a team full of newcomers to a 19-14 overall record. Despite the higher number of losses compared to previous seasons, she helped Illinois State to its fourth consecutive NCAA bid after winning the conference tournament. Johnson signed a five-year contract extension with Illinois State in January 2022, but on February 7, 2022, she was announced as the new head coach at Michigan State.

Michigan State

On February 7, 2022, Johnson was announced as Michigan State's head coach, following the retirement of

Cathy George Cathy George is a college women's volleyball coach. She began her coaching career at North Dakota State, coaching there for two years. She moved on to coach Texas-Arlington and made the NCAA tournament twice with the team. She coached Western Mich ...

Head coaching record

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Leah 1981 births Living people American volleyball coaches Missouri State Lady Bears women's volleyball players SIU Edwardsville Cougars women's volleyball coaches Illinois State Redbirds women's volleyball coaches Michigan State Spartans women's volleyball coaches American women's volleyball players Sportspeople from Missouri Missouri State University alumni