BOONE, N.C. – Sarah Rumely Noble, a former All-American student-athlete and a fast riser in the college coaching ranks, has been tabbed as the ninth head coach in App State volleyball history, Director of Athletics Doug Gillin announced Thursday.

Rumely Noble joins the Mountaineers from LSU, where she worked as an assistant for the past five seasons, including as the Tigers' associate head coach in 2021.
 
"We are excited to welcome Sarah and her husband, T.S., to the App State family," said Director of Athletics Doug Gillin. "Sarah's vision aligns with our core values of academic integrity, competitive excellence, social responsibility and world-class experience. She is a proven recruiter and mentor of young women. The future of App State Volleyball is bright."
 
Serving as LSU's recruiting coordinator, Rumely Noble helped the Tigers bring in nationally ranked classes in 2019 (13th), 2020 (22nd) and 2022 (17th), according to Prepvolleyball.com. Over the last four recruiting classes at LSU, Rumely Noble reeled in nine top-100 players.
 
In her five seasons at LSU, Rumely Noble helped the Tigers post 67 victories and a berth in the 2017 NCAA Tournament, while running the offense with a faster system and working primarily with the setters. The setters she coached were named SEC Setter of the Week three times, and two were named to the SEC All-Freshman Team.
 
"I am humbled and excited to be the next leader of App State Volleyball," said Rumely Noble. "I want to thank Doug Gillin, Makini Thompson and the rest of the search committee for believing in my vision and entrusting me with this program. The energy in the athletics department is evident and I'm excited to get to work."
 
Prior to LSU, Rumely Noble spent two seasons at Arkansas, where she ran the defense in 2016 and directed the offense in 2015. She also coached at Wake Forest from 2013-15, recruiting three players that earned All-ACC honors. She began her coaching career at North Texas for two seasons (2010-11).
 
Rumely Noble was a four-time All-SEC setter and two-time AVCA All-American at Kentucky from 2006-09, where she earned SEC Freshman of the Year honors in 2006 and SEC Player of the Year honors in 2008. She also was named a third-team Academic All-American in 2009. She led the Wildcats to four NCAA Tournament appearances and is still the program's all-time leader in assists and service aces. She was inducted into the Kentucky Athletics Hall of Fame in 2017 and was named an SEC Women's Legend in 2019.
 
Rumely Noble played overseas in the top professional division in France, Ligue A, where she was the starting setter for Nantes Volley Feminin from 2010-11.
 
She graduated from Kentucky in 2009 with a degree in education-kinesiology.