NORCROSS JR. BLUE DEVILS
VOLLEYBALL TEAM!
Meet Our Coaches!
Master Coach Karen Murray has played and coached volleyball for over 35 years. Her professional coaching career began in 1994 as Head Coach for Division II Merrimack College (Amhurst, MA) and took a traditionally winless program to a respectable adversary in just 2 years. Once relocated to Georgia, Murray began coaching with Suwanee Sports Academy clinics and the Vertical One Volleyball Club 15 - 1's team in 2005 and then with GA5/A5G from 2011-2016. She has been part of the Norcross High volleyball staff 2009-2023, primarily as Head JV Coach and is now Master Coach of Norcross Junior Blue Devils.
Coach Murray is proud to be a member of the Norcross/Peachtree Corners community. She often substitute teaches at Simpson Elementary and also owns Peachtree Volleyball, a company offering camps, clinics and private lessons to players of all ages. She is married to Brian Murray and has 2 children who went through the Norcross Cluster of the Gwinnett County Public Schools. One is currently playing volleyball at Winthrop University and the other is an alum of Auburn University.
A Team Coach Emma Hill is the Assistant Director of Student Ministries just down the street at Simpsonwood United Methodist Church. She grew up in Norcross/Peachtree Corners and is excited to help grow the sport of volleyball in her hometown. Coach Emma grew up playing every sport imaginable, and she finally found volleyball at the end of 8th grade. It was love at first spike! She played at NHS all 4 years and at NAVC, coached at PCBC & the Y, and is now a club coach at A5 Gwinnett. She is passionate about helping girls develop a love for the sport of volleyball and to empower them to become strong, independent young women through sport. She graduated from the University of Georgia with degrees in Psychology and Athletic Training and is a Bulldog through and through but has a soft spot for Norcross Blue Devils in her heart.
A Team Assistant Coach Taylor Hentz is a college student currently in school to become a surgical technician. She has been playing volleyball since her freshman year of high school. She played volleyball at a collegiate level for 1 year at a division 2 school. She has coached girls volleyball for almost 4 years. She cannot wait to return for her 3rd season with NJBD. She is passionate about coaching and is looking forward to sharing her knowledge with all of NJBD's players.
B Team Coach Sharon Li is originally from New York City and has played volleyball for 10 years. She started in 8th grade and grew to love the sport more as she played in various teams through high school and college. One notable season was a summer league called NACIVT which was played on concrete. She has also played in a few grass and beach tournaments. She recently started coaching at M2 Volleyball and has helped her 12s and 14s local teams win 1st in the Silver Bracket at both Georgia Foothills Festival and Swingin into Spring Tournament. One interesting fact about Coach Sharon is that she has an adorable Shiba Inu named Meeko, named after the raccoon in Pocahontas. She is excited to advance her coaching journey with NJBD Volleyball.
C Team Coach Emma Mock is a sophomore at Georgia State University. She started playing volleyball at the YMCA when she was 12 and loved getting to learn the sport and develop her skills. She made the freshman volleyball team at NHS and really enjoyed applying the skills she learned the past three years to a more challenging platform. She is very excited to have this opportunity to coach our NJBD girls again and teach them about a sport she loves. She's confident they will enjoy the sport as much as she does!
C Team Coach Ella Mock is a Senior at Paul Duke STEM high school. She is an honor student, a Sunday School group leader, & a graphic designer. She started playing volleyball at the YMCA when she was ten, and played all through middle school. She started out knowing nothing about the sport, but put herself out there and tried something new and ended up loving her time as a player! Her goal is to create a safe and fun space for all of the NJBD players to come and learn volleyball. She is very excited to coach our team, and can’t wait to meet the players!