Beach Volleyball

Jeff Alzina, who has more than 25 years of volleyball coaching experience, completed his fourth season as associate head coach for Santa Clara beach volleyball in 2022 and was elevated to the head coach in July, 2022.  

Alzina, hired in February 2019, brings a diverse background in both the indoor and beach games to Santa Clara from high school through Olympic-level teams. He is the winningest coach in AVP Beach Volleyball history, with more than 1,100 victories to his credit, and won a national championship with UCLA beach volleyball in 2018.

During Alzina's time with Bronco beach, Santa Clara has earned eight WCC all-academic nods (two all-academic team selections and six honorable mentions).

The Broncos hit their stride toward the end of the 2020 season, which was shortened due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Santa Clara won three of four matches after the calendar turned from February to March, including a 3-2 victory over Pacific for the first dual win on Mission campus grounds since the opening of the Santa Clara Beach Volleyball Courts in 2018 (March 4). The team followed up that triumph with two-win day at the Big West/WCC Challenge, topping Cal State Bakersfield and Sacramento State. SCU set a program record with six WCC All-Academic honorees.

Alzina was hired less than a month before the start of the 2019 season. The team posted back-to-back dual victories over conference opponents with 4-1 wins over San Francisco and Pacific at the WCC Midseason Invitational in late March.

The veteran coach joined the Broncos from UCLA, where he won the 2018 NCAA beach volleyball national championship as a volunteer assistant coach. UCLA's beach team posted a 40-4 overall record during its championship season. The Bruins went on a 31-match winning streak from March through May and held serve as the NCAA Tournament's No. 1 overall seed to win their first national championship on the sand.

In 2017, Alzina served as a volunteer assistant for Long Beach State beach volleyball. LBSU posted a 26-10 record that season to double its win total from the previous year, and qualified for the NCAA Tournament as the No. 6 seed. Between his tenures at UCLA and Long Beach State, Alzina coached 12 All-Americans and 17 all-conference honorees.

Alzina spent nine years across two stints as an assistant coach for the Cal State Los Angeles women's indoor team (2002-06, 2012-15). The Golden Eagles went 170-92 (.649) with Alzina on staff. He helped produce eight All-Americans, nine all-region players and 31 all-conference selections, including 2005 conference player of the year Tiare Tuitama and two conference freshmen of the year.

The Santa Cruz, California native studied social psychology as an undergraduate student at UC Santa Barbara and earned a master's in kinesiology from Long Beach State.

"Santa Clara volleyball has a very strong tradition, and I'm really excited to grow its legacy," Alzina said upon being hired. "With both Coach Lindsey and I earning separate 2018 NCAA National Championships, the Broncos will get to experience the infectious momentum and the detailed training that come from achieving those titles."

Head Coach Erin Lindsey on Alzina: "Jeff is an experienced coach and teacher who has worked with a wide variety of athletes from beginners to Olympians. He has an exceptional rapport with the student-athletes and knows what it takes to win championships. I liked that he possessed experience coaching both indoor and beach and will help continue to grow our recruiting relationships in Southern California. His experience in preparation and scouting for important matches will be of significant value for both indoor and beach teams. Jeff will take the lead in training our beach athletes and continue to improve our beach program."