TicketsPhillip White joined the University of Cincinnati volleyball team in 2013 as the volunteer assistant and moved to a full time assistant position in 2014 before earning the associate head coach title following the 2016 season.
Despite losing two of their starters to injury in 2023, the Bearcats saw a three-spot improvement from their preseason projection. The slate was highlighted by major wins over Big 12 foes TCU and Kansas State. In addition, middle blocker Zeta Washington collected Big 12 All-Rookie honors – the first-ever Bearcat to procure a yearly Big 12 award.
The 2022 season saw Abby Walker and Carly Glendinning earn AAC Second Team All-Conference accolades.
The Bearcats finished the 2021 season 19-9 overall and 14-6 in conference play. The season was highlighted by Abby Walker earning AAC Freshman of the Year honors, the first Bearcat to earn this award since Jordan Thompson did in 2015.
he 2020 season was impacted by COVID-19, moving to the Spring of 2021. The Bearcats finished 6-7 overall, and 4-4 in conference play.
The level of Bearcats volleyball continued to rise in 2019. UC went 15-1 in conference play to earn the outright American Athletic Conference regular season title and make its third NCAA postseason appearance in four years. The first-round win over VCU in NCAA Tournament marked the 200th win in Alvey's career. The team advanced to the second round of the tournament for the sixth time in program history and faced No. 2 ranked and No. 6 seed host Pitt. In a thrilling five-set match, the Bearcats pulled off the win over Pitt and advanced on to NCAA Regional play as one of the final 16 teams for the first time in school history.
In 2016, White helped guide the program to a 22-10 overall record and 17-3 mark in the American Athletic Conference, good for second place in the league. The Bearcats earned the first NCAA at-large bid in conference history when it was drawn into the Gainesville regional to face No. 16 Florida State in the opening round. He then helped continue the success with another NCAA appearance in 2018 as the team advanced to the second round.
In the summer of 2016, he was selected as an assistant coach for the USA Volleyball Collegiate National Team. Along with Jorodan Thompson, who was chosen as a player on the team, White toured China for two weeks, coaching the team in practices and games against Chinese national and professional teams.
White came to UC with over 12 years of coaching experience at the high school, club, college and national levels as well as ample directing and playing experience. Before starting his stint at Cincinnati, White spent two years as the head coach and training coach at the Academy Volleyball Club (AVC) in Cleveland, Ohio while also acting as the associate director of volleyball at the SPIRE Institute in Geneva, Ohio.
At the AVC, he was a training coach for the 15, 16, 17 and 18-year-old club players, amassing 100 athletes. White oversaw all training of individual defensive skills and team block/defensive systems. While at the club, he earned silver medals at the 2013 AAU National Championships and at the 2013 Junior Olympic National Championships as the head coach of the AVC 17s team.
At the SPIRE Institute, White organized and administered all ongoing volleyball training sessions for 50 athletes, coordinated recruitment, marketed the volleyball program and designed camps and college combines. Two of his top athletes that he mentored and trained committed to play their college careers at UC San Diego and UCLA.
White was the head volleyball coach at Schreiner University from 2008 through 2011. White took over a program that was 11-14 in its previous season and compiled three consecutive winning seasons during his tenure. White was named American Southwest Conference Coach of the Year in 2009, the same year his team set the single-season wins record for the school. He had two players earn ASC All-Conference awards from the 2009 volleyball team.
Before taking the head job at Schreiner, White was an assistant coach at the University of Southern California from 2007 through 2008. He was responsible for backcourt training as well as the block and defense systems. While at USC, the team made it to the NCAA National Championship match.
White coached at Los Alamitos High School from 2004-2007. There he won two Division I State Championships. He also led the boys program to the most successful season in school history. He coached at the club level for the Southern California Volleyball Club (SCVC) from 2002 - 2008.
Additionally, White has 11 years of directing camps under his belt, including NIKE volleyball camps in Texas and California, and USA High Performance boys' camps.
White played his collegiate volleyball at Long Beach State from 2000-2004 and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Communications. His junior season, White earned MPSF All-Conference honors. White was part of the 2004 team that played for a national championship title coming up just short to BYU in the fifth set.