Leah Mercer, Recruiting Specialist

[email protected]

(312) 579-2552

Athletics have been the center of my world for as long as I can remember. Growing up playing soccer, basketball and softball exposed me to many different friends and teams. It was in middle school that I found my love for volleyball. I continued to be a three sport athlete in high school competing at the varsity level for four years in volleyball, basketball and softball. While my goal was to play collegiate volleyball from the start, the recruiting process took me in a slightly different direction. I started my college athletic career at the University of Southern Indiana on the basketball team where I played for two years. While it was a very successful program (1997 GLVC regular season champions and GLVC Tournament Host and Champions; NCAA II Regional Host), I knew I would be happier playing volleyball. I made my way to the volleyball team where I maximized my eligibility and played three years. I was a two time team captain and two time All-GLVC Team member. Our 2000 overall record is still the best in school history, 27-4 and we hosted the GLVC Tournament for the first time that year. I graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Physical Education Teaching; K-12.

Because of some very influential coaches along the way and my passion for volleyball, I made my way into collegiate coaching right out of college. I started as a volunteer assistant at Purdue University, then moved on to a graduate assistant at Ohio University earning my Masters degree in Recreation and Sports Sciences; Coaching Education. Next was moving to Chicago to be the top assistant at Loyola University Chicago. My final coaching stop was back to my alma mater; USI, where I coaches for 14 seasons; making 11 trips to the Great Lakes Valley Conference Tournament and three trips to the NCAA II Tournament. I was named Great Lakes Valley Coach of the Year in 2013. I graduated many decorated student athletes and am thankful for my 19 years at USI as an athlete and a coach. 

During my 17 years in collegiate coaching, I came across a lot of families that were unfamiliar with the recruiting process and exactly how to get their child to the next level. I am very excited to be on this side of recruiting with NCSA to help as many student athletes as possible find their dream college.