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Nagy Abdelrazek
Nagy Abdelrazek, in his 18th season as head coach of the
Cardinals, has enjoyed much success over the years. During his time
in the nation’s capital, he has guided the Cardinals to
back-to-back Capital Athletic Conference championships and NCAA
tournament appearances in 2001 and 2002.
Last season CUA once again experienced a successful season under
Abdelrazek, as the Cardinals posted a mark of 24-14 overall and a
4-2 record in the Landmark Conference. CUA advanced to the
semifinals of the Landmark tournament and went undefeated on its
home court (9-0). Following the season Kristina Purcell
earned Second-Team All-Conference honors after leading the
Cardinals and finishing third in the conference in digs with
536.
In 2008, Abdelrazek led CUA to a 20-15 record, going 5-1 in the Landmark Conference and earning the second seed in the conference tournament. This performance resulted in Landmark Conference Coach of the Year honors for Abdelrazek and his staff.
Voted the CAC Coach of the Year in 1994, 1999, 2000 and 2001, Abdelrazek led the Cardinals to a school-best 38-3 mark in 2001. After leading the team to a 35-6 mark in 2000, Abdelrazek was named the Mid-Atlantic Region Coach of the Year by the American Volleyball Coaches Association.
One of the most respected coaches in the game, Abdelrazek is one of just 26 coaches nationally to qualify for Level III of USA Volleyball's Coaching Accreditation Program at its Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo. His knowledge and experience have paid dividends for the Cardinals.
Abdelrazek came to CUA in 1993 and made an immediate impact by guiding the team to a 32-13 finish. The next season, the Cardinals went 36-17, won the CAC championship, and Abdelrazek was awarded his first CAC Coach of the Year honor.
A 1984 graduate of the University of Alexandria in Egypt, Abdelrazek earned a physical education degree. He has also passed the International Volleyball Federation Level III and USA Volleyball Coaches Association Program Level III certification exams. His FIVB certification qualifies him to coach international teams.
Abdelrazek started playing at the national level in Egypt at age 15 and continued into college where he was a four-time all-star. He has played in more than 35 matches at the international level.
Abdelrazek currently serves as the intramural director in CUA's Athletic Department. He and his wife, Elizabeth, live in Silver Spring, Md., with their daughters, Alexa and Sara.
Mary Kerski
Mary Kerski is in her first season as an assistant coach for the
Catholic University volleyball program. Coach Kerski began
her love for volleyball at an early age, playing for schools and
clubs in the South Florida and Virginia/Chesapeake regions.
In 2003, Kerski played for Forest Park High School, becoming a
member of the school's first ever volleyball state championship
team.
Due to a knee injury, Kerski decided to take a break from
volleyball and pursue her education and interest in volleyball at
Florida State University. During her junior year she moved back to
Virginia and began coaching volleyball at Forest Park High School
under head coach Dan Jones where she helped lead the team to
another state tournament appearance.
While coaching at Forest Park High School, Kerski was offered the
Head Coaching position at Woodbridge Senior High School. She
continued to coach at Woodbridge Senior High and earned the
Cardinal District Coach of the Year Award in 2007 and again in
2008. Kerski was the first Cardinal District Coach to introduce to
the area the Side-Out Foundation Dig Pink match to raise Breast
Cancer Awareness in 2008. In 2009 WSHS partnered with Hylton High
School and raised over $3000 for the Side-Out Foundation.
Coach Kerski works in the Arlington area for the Transportation
Security Administration, Office of Security Technology. She has a
degree from Marymount University in Psychology with a strong
Exercise Science background. She is a graduate student at CUA
working to earn a Master’s degree in Federal Human Resource
Management. Kerski is AFAA Personal Trainer and Group Fitness
certified.
Tashi Sakota
Tashi Sakota is in his third season as an assistant coach with
the Catholic University volleyball program. He grew up in
Omaha, Nebraska where he began playing volleyball as a sophomore
for his high school club volleyball team and has been playing for
over 18 years.
After earning a B.S. in business management from the Marriot
School of Management at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah,
Sakota received his Juris Doctor at the University of Idaho College
of Law in Moscow, Idaho. While in law school in Idaho, Sakota
played setter, opposite the setter and middle hitter for the
men’s club volleyball team. In May, 2008 he received a
master’s of laws in taxation from the Georgetown University
Law Center in Washington, D.C., and sat for the Maryland Bar
Exam. He now works in College Park, Maryland at Vecna
Technologies.
Sakota and his wife Hollie reside in Montgomery Village, Maryland
with their son Aidan.
