Long Beach State University Athletics
LBSU Women's Volleyball Adds Hailey Harward
2/26/2016 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
Long Beach, Calif. - Long Beach State head coach Brian Gimmillaro has announced an addition to the 2015-16 signing class for women's volleyball, welcoming in the highly talented Hailey Harward. A Phoenix, Ariz. native, Harward was an outside hitter at Desert Vista High School and for her club team, Aspire Volleyball Club. However, she also projects as a libero at Long Beach State after gaining international experience in that role with Team USA's U18 team.
"I believe she will have an immediate impact on the program," said Long Beach State head coach Brian Gimmillaro, who will enter his 32nd season in 2016. "She is an outstanding athlete who has dedicated herself to become a great player and a distinguished student. I look forward to the opportunity of working with her in the fall."
In the summer of 2014, Harward was able to represent the United States at the Girls' U18 NORCECA Continental Championships in San Jose, Costa Rica. Harward was the starting libero for Team USA, helping the Red, White & Blue to a silver medal in that competition. She was also included on Team USA's 20-player preliminary roster for the Girls' U18 World Championships in 2015, held in Peru.
Harward comes from a highly successful high school program at Desert Vista, where she was a four-year starter for head coach Molly West. The Thunder went a combined 142-30 the past four seasons with Harward on the roster, but they were particularly dominant over her junior and senior seasons. Desert Vista won consecutive AIA Division I state championships the past two years with a combined record of 81-6. They also finished both seasons with a national Top 10 ranking.
Playing as an outside hitter, the 5-foot-9 Harward accumulated 943 kills in her high school career, averaging 2.3 kills per set over four years. As a senior she averaged 2.4 kills, 3.0 digs and 0.5 blocks per set.
Harward will join Long Beach State for the upcoming 2016-17 school year and compete during the indoor season this fall. She is also expected to contribute to the beach volleyball squad starting in 2017. She becomes the fifth member of a very talented incoming class to Long Beach, joining November signings Ashley Anselmo, Morgan Dewyer, Hannah Pauling and Yizhi Xue.
