Melissa Robinson was announced as the Auburn Montgomery head volleyball coach in January of 2017. She is the second head coach in the history of the program, which began play in the fall of 2017.
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In the first year of competition, she led the Warhawks to a 9-21 record. In a year of many firsts for AUM, Robinson guided the Warhawks to its first win in program history, a 3-0 defeat over Lemoyne-Owen College on Sept. 1 and the first home match and Gulf South Conference contest via a 3-2 triumph over West Georgia on Sept. 23. The Warhawks received national attention during the 2017 campaign, with right side hitter Kheala Roberts earning HERO Sports D2 Volleyball HERO of the Week accolades while Carly Smart became the program’s first recipient of the AUM ROTC Athletic Achievement Award.
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Prior to joining the Warhawks, Robinson was the head coach at Tuskegee University. During her two seasons with the Tigerettes, Robinson helped the team to a 32-32 record, including a 25-16 mark in Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play. In her first season at Tuskegee, she led the team to an 18-13 mark, the most wins by the program since 1997. Robinson coached four all-conference performers, including the 2015 Co-SIAC Player of the Year, and one All-South Region performer. She also guided a student-athlete to the NCAA Division II Statistical Championship in aces per set her first season.
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While at the helm at TU, Robinson directed all aspects of the program, including the organization of practices and contests, team travel, budget management, recruiting, scheduling, supervision of team academics and team fundraising.
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Prior to her tenure at Tuskegee, Robinson was an assistant coach at Claflin University in Orangeburg, S.C. In her lone season at CU, she played a key role in helping the Panthers qualify for their first NCAA Regional and coached three all-conference performers. Robinson served as an assistant coach at her alma mater South Carolina State in 2013, as well as the program’s graduate assistant in 2012. She also worked with the OLC Volleyball Club in Orangeburg, where she guided a team to a fifth-place finish in the South Carolina club division.
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Before joining the coaching ranks, Robinson enjoyed a stellar three-year career with the Lady Bulldogs, helping the team to the 2010 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference championship. She finished her career with 128 kills, 134 assists and 996 digs, breaking the school season record with 449 digs as a senior. She also holds the school record with seven aces in one set. Off the court, she was a member of the SCSU Student-Athlete Advisory Committee.
A native of Tallahassee, Fla., Robinson earned her bachelor’s degree from South Carolina State in 2012.
