Benedictine University Mesa

Shawn Close comes to Benedictine from Park University Gilbert where he was the head coach of the women’s volleyball program for the 2022 season leading them to their second NAIA National Tournament Appearance. He was an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator during the season they made their first appearance in 2021.

Close got his start at Desert Ridge High School where he was an assistant for a team which posted a 52-27 record during his time with the program.    

In the 2017-2018 school year, Close joined the men's program at Desert Ridge coming off of an eight-win season and helped them to 25 wins over the next two seasons.

After the Covid-19 pandemic, Close took the reins as the first head coach in the history of American Leadership Academy-Ironwood where he was tasked with building the boys program from scratch. In his first season, he led ALA-Ironwood to a 4A state tournament berth, a feat never before accomplished by  a first-year program.  Close was named co-Coach of the Year at the conclusion of his second season in 2021 where he posted an 11-5 record.

Close is an established coach in the Arizona club volleyball scene, currently coaching with the premier volleyball club in the state, Arizona Fear where he helps mentor its 17U team. Prior to this, Close coached a little-known club program (Rush Volleyball Club) to a ranking as one of the top teams in the country.