Former head coach of Iowa volleyball joins Bulls program coming off NCAA appearance

TAMPA, FEB. 26, 2026 – University of South Florida Women's Volleyball Head Coach Jolene has named Vicki Werskey, a former head coach at the University of Iowa, as assistant coach for the Bulls. Werskey (formerly Vicki Brown) joins the program following USF's appearance in the 2025 NCAA Tournament and brings extensive collegiate coaching and playing experience to Tampa.

Werskey arrives at USF after serving two years as director of the Gators EmpowHER mentor program within the University of Florida Athletics Association. Prior to that role, she led the Iowa volleyball program for two seasons (2019–21) after initially joining the Hawkeyes in 2017 as associate head coach.

"We are thankful to welcome Vicki to the University of South Florida and our USF Athletics family," Shepardson said. "She brings a tremendous background in collegiate volleyball and a great capacity to connect with and mentor student-athletes to reach their highest potential. We are fired up to take Bulls Volleyball to another level in 2026."

During her tenure at Iowa, Werskey helped guide the Hawkeyes to multiple wins over ranked opponents, highlighted by a program-best victory over No. 6 Wisconsin in 2018. Under her leadership, several student-athletes earned All-Big Ten and All-Region honors.

Prior to her time at Iowa, Werskey served one season as head coach of both the indoor volleyball and beach volleyball programs at the University of San Francisco. She also served on staff at University of California, Davis from 2014–15 as recruiting coordinator, overseeing recruiting operations and team travel.

Werskey previously spent two seasons at Illinois State University, helping the Redbirds to a combined 37–25 record. Her primary responsibilities included defensive strategy, scouting, and recruiting. She began her collegiate coaching career as a volunteer assistant at University of Toledo, working with opposites, liberos, and defensive specialists. In addition, she served as head coach for the Toledo Volleyball Club 14s and 15s teams, where she became known for implementing training systems adopted across age groups.

As a player, Werskey enjoyed a professional career with stops in Austria, Puerto Rico, and Spain. At the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, she earned All-Big Ten honorable mention honors twice as a middle blocker and ranked among the conference's top 10 hitters in each of her final two seasons. She recorded more than 1,000 career kills, surpassed 100 blocks in three consecutive years, and earned six tournament MVP honors before graduating in 2008 with a degree in communications.

Werskey is married to Eric Werskey, an assistant track and field coach at the University of Florida.

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About USF Volleyball
Head coach Jolene Shepardson enters her seventh season at the helm of her alma mater in 2026. Named head coach on January 8, 2020, as a player she helped lead the Bulls to two conference championships and a pair of NCAA tournament appearances. As head coach, she led the Bulls back to the NCAA Tournament in 2025 for the first time since she was a player in 2002. Shepardson led the Bulls to the 2024 AAC regular-season championship, earning her first Coach of the Year Honor. In 2023, the Bulls won the AAC East Division, made a postseason appearance in the NIVC, won three matches, and advanced to the Fab Four to mark the longest postseason run in program history. South Florida Volleyball has won nine Player of the Year honors, most recently with Maria Clara Andrade winning in back-to-back years in 2024 and 2025. The Bulls have also had four Setter of the Year honors, most recently in Caroline Dykes in 2024. South Florida has made eight NCAA Tournament appearances and won 13 conference titles since the volleyball program's inception in 1972. The Bulls play in The Corral (1,000), located adjacent to the Yuengling Center on the USF campus in Tampa. 
 
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