Courtesy of Air Force Athletics – 

USAF ACADEMY, Colo. – Macey (Gardner) Donathan has been named volleyball head coach at Air Force, according to an announcement today from Director of Athletics Nathan Pine. Donathan comes to the Academy from Club One Volleyball in Tempe, Ariz. Before that, Donathan spent seven years as a Division I assistant coach and recruiting coordinator with stops at Arizona State, Arkansas and Liberty.

“We are thrilled to welcome Macey Donathan to the Academy to lead our volleyball program,” Pine said. “She has an outstanding history both as a standout player and an accomplished coach. Her passion for the sport of volleyball and mentorship of young women will dovetail nicely into our mission of developing leaders of character for the Air and Space Forces. I look forward to working with her to help our program excel in the years to come.”

“I think about the type of athlete that one can consistently encounter at the Air Force Academy and you will find a leader in training and a person who is willingly putting their life in a position to protect our country in one form or another,” Donathan said. “That is the kind of athlete I want to coach and one that will inspire me every day to be the best that I can be. The support of the volleyball program and the desire to give these athletes a once in a lifetime experience is something my family and I wholeheartedly stand with. Big thanks to Nathan Pine, Jen Block, Shondell Reed and George Nelson for willingly giving me a chance to lead the cadets of the volleyball program as we look forward to bright days ahead.”

A former outside hitter for Arizona State, Donathan’s name is all across the record book, including holding the record for career kills. She was also an All-American in 2014 and helped ASU to its highest ranking in program history in 2015.

Donathan was an assistant coach at Arkansas from 2019-2022 where she helped guide the Razorbacks to their first NCAA tournament appearance since 2013. The Razorbacks not only qualified for the postseason, but advanced to the second round. Arkansas finished ranked No. 25 in the final 2022 AVCA rankings after a second-consecutive 20-win season. In her four years of helping to build the program, she coached three players to a total of seven all-conference honors, including 2020 SEC Freshman of the Year and 2022 AVCA All-America honorable mention Taylor Head.

“Macey was instrumental in the rise of Arizona State as a student-athlete. Those same traits have carried over to her coaching career,” Arkansas Head Coach Jason Watson said. “She’s driven, prepared and continually mindful of those around her. Our recent success at Arkansas is due, in part, to her dedication to ensuring our student-athletes came first. This is an exciting hire for the student-athletes at Air Force.”

In her two seasons coaching at Arizona State in 2017 and 2018, she coached two All-Pac-12 outside hitters in Oluoma Okaro and Alyse Ford. She helped ASU to a 14-18, 5-15 Pac-12 record in 2018, the biggest improvement since 2012. After a rebuilding season in 2017, the Sun Devils improved immensely, earning four more wins in the season total and five more in conference play. The Sun Devils were ranked in the AVCA Coaches Poll at No. 25 on October 8, the first time being ranked since 2015. ASU had three wins against top-15 teams that season, the most in a single year since 2015, Donathan’s senior season.

Prior to ASU, she had one season as an assistant coach under Shane Pinder at Liberty University.

Donathan finished her career at Arizona State in 2015 as the Sun Devils’ all-time leader in career kills with 1,882, a total that ranks 18th all-time in Pac-12 history. She was a three-time Pac-12 All-Conference selection, one of three ASU volleyball players to do so. As a 2014 AVCA All-America third-team selection, Donathan totaled 594 kills as a junior. Donathan holds Arizona State’s freshman season record with 577 kills in 2012, which led the Pac-12 that year. She also spent two seasons on the Sun Devils’ beach volleyball team.

In her playing days, Donathan gained experience at the international level. She was selected to play on the Pac-12 volleyball All-Star team in China in 2013. Donathan also participated in winter training with the US National Team that year.

In addition to her time in the collegiate ranks, Donathan has coached volleyball on the club level, which was where her coaching career began. She led Club One for four seasons while spending one season with Club Red. Additionally, Donathan coached the Club One 18’s for one season of sand volleyball. Her first gig was as an assistant coach for Club One Volleyball from 2012-15.

A valley native who prepped at Gilbert High School in Gilbert, Ariz., Donathan graduated from Arizona State in December of 2015, earning a bachelor’s degree in business communication. Macey and her husband, Zach, have two sons: Benaiah and Elliot.