BGSU volleyball elevates Cooke to associate head coach

The Bowling Green State University volleyball program and head coach Danijela Tomic have announced the promotion of former Assistant Coach Alison Cooke to the position of Associate Head Coach.

“I am thrilled to announce Ali’s earned and deserved promotion to Associate Head Coach,” said head coach Danijela Tomic.

“She is invaluable to our coaching staff and has helped us build a championship team culture and win MAC championships. Ali’s character, work ethic, and desire to learn are admirable and have helped her become an excellent young coach and leader.

“I am grateful for her loyalty to our program and for going above and beyond to help us keep raising the BGSU Volleyball standards.I look forward to seeing her grow and thrive in the coaching profession and, hopefully, for many more years as a Falcon.”

During Cooke’s time with the Falcons, BGSU has had four MAC Player of the Year recipients. Kallie Seimet won the award in 2017 and 2018 while Petra Indrova was the recipient in 2021 and 2022.

Seimet was also named the MAC Defensive Player of the Year in 2017 and 2018, becoming the first athlete in MAC history to receive both awards in back-to-back seasons.

The Falcons have also had Julia Walz named the MAC Defensive Player of the Year in 2021 and Lauryn Hovey named the MAC Freshman of the Year in 2022. Over Cooke’s tenure, the Falcons have had 12 All-MAC First Team, three All-MAC Second Team and five MAC All-Freshman Team selections.

In addition to her responsibilities on the court, Cooke has taken a leadership role in social media for the volleyball program. Cooke oversees the Twitter, Instagram and TikTok accounts of the team and aids in creating the graphic content of the pages as well.

“I feel privileged to be a part of this program and am grateful for Coach Tomic’s trust in me,” said Cooke. “I believe in the vision of our program and am thankful for an athletic administration and university that believes in it as well.

“Danijela Tomic and Alex DelPiombo have both been incredible leaders and mentors for me and I am proud of what we have accomplished together. I would like to thank our players who inspire me daily and push me to be my best.

“The past six years have been extraordinarily special and I am fortunate to have the opportunity to continue to work with our incredible players, staff, and community that make Bowling Green such a wonderful place.”

Cooke joined the BGSU volleyball staff in June 2017, coming from Duke University and is now entering her seventh season with the Falcons.

Cooke has been a member of a staff that has coached the Falcons to back-to-back MAC Regular Season titles in 2017 and 2018 as well as the MAC Regular Season and MAC Tournament titles in 2020-21 and 2022 that both included an NCAA Tournament appearance. Over her six years with the program, BGSU has a 121-58 record, including an 88-17 MAC standing.