Regina Cougars hire new women's volleyball coach

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The University of Regina Cougars women’s volleyball team will have a new head coach for the 2023-24 season. 

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Regina Cougars hire new women's volleyball coach Back to video

On Friday, the Cougars announced the hiring of Prateek Yadav. 

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“I’m excited to get going and looking forward to starting this journey in my life,” said Yadav. “This has been the end goal, to coach at a collegiate level.” 

Originally from Mississauga, Yadav has spent time as an assistant coach at the U Sports level with the University of Guelph women’s team. He’s also coached at the provincial level with Team Ontario Elite, Team Ontario Academy, Indigenous Team Ontario, and Team Ontario Black.

Much of his coaching – and playing – career has been with the Pakmen Volleyball Club, as he has helped turn the program into the most successful youth club in the country. And now he’s looking to bring that same winning culture to the Cougars. 

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“I want the University of Regina to stand out as one of the top volleyball programs in the country,” he told the Leader-Post. “The main goal is to build a strong culture for the athletes and coaches and our environment. 

“Hopefully we can add some winning pedigree to that as well.” 

Yadav is replacing Lee Hamilton, who served as the Cougars interim head coach last season after longtime head coach Melanie Sanford retired in May of 2022. And while Yadav can’t turn into a two-time Canada West Coach of the Year like Sanford overnight, he does think he can bring prosperity back to the program over time. 

“Hopefully in the next couple of years, we are a constant contender in the playoffs,” he said. “It’s going to take a little bit of time but with the proper support, I think we can definitely achieve that.” 

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And one of Yadav’s biggest priorities will be recruiting athletes to play for the U of R. And while there’s a certain skill level athletes need to play at the university level, Yadav wants to focus on building a strong culture within the team. 

“When I look at recruiting athletes now, I look for mentality over physicality,” he said. “I will look for athletes that want to play for the program and that want to buy in to the culture. 

Yadav officially starts his new position on June 5.