BILLINGS, Mont. – Montana State University Billings Director of Athletics Dr. Gary Gray has announced the hiring of Metro State assistant volleyball coach Lisa Axel as the 13^th head volleyball coach at MSUB.
 
“I am very pleased that Coach Axel has accepted our offer to become our head volleyball coach,” Dr. Gray stated. “She brings a wealth of experience from one of the top NCAA Division II programs in the country (Metro State). Coach Axel played at a very high level and has learned from some of the best mentors in intercollegiate volleyball.  She is a strong proponent of Division II and has recruited well in our geographical region. I am very confident she will advance our volleyball program in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference and the West Region. I look forward to working with her; I know she will become a valued member of our MSUB staff.”
 
Axel comes to MSUB after having spent the last six seasons as the top assistant at Metro State where she helped lead the Roadrunners to six NCAA Division II Tournament appearances, including six NCAA Tournament wins. During her tenure, she served as the team's recruiting coordinator and also oversaw student-athlete academics and in 2010 was a recipient of the American Volleyball Coaches' Association (AVCA) Thirty Under 30 Award.
 
The Roadrunners were 130-57 (.695) during her six seasons at Metro.
 
“I would like to thank Dr. Gray and the Montana State University Billings athletic department for the opportunity to be the next head volleyball coach,” said Axel. “I want to also thank (Metro head coach) Debbie Hendricks for mentoring me over the past six seasons and giving me the experience that I will bring to this volleyball program. I am looking forward to taking the MSUB volleyball program to the next level in the GNAC and I am excited to get in the gym with the team and start training for next season.”
 
Prior to her time at Metro State, Axel spent two seasons as the first assistant coach at Division I institution North Dakota State University and also served as the interim head coach of the Bison from January 2006 until May of that same year. As the first assistant, she served as the recruiting coordinator as well as coordinated the scouting of opponents and planning travel arrangements.
 
A native of Buffalo, Minn., Axel played four seasons at the University of Minnesota, where she led the Golden Gophers to the school's first and only Big Ten championship in 2002 as the starting libero her senior year. She participated in four NCAA Division I Tournaments which included making three Sweet Sixteen appearances.
 
She received her Bachelor of Sciences degree from Minnesota in Biology and was a three-time Academic All-Big Ten selection (2000-02). She was also an Intercollegiate Athletic Scholar all four years of her collegiate career.
 
In high school, Axel was named Ms. Minnesota Volleyball in 1998 and was named the Gatorade Circle of Champions Minnesota High School Volleyball Player of the Year that same year. She was a three-time all-state selection (1996-98), a five-time all-conference selection (1994-98) and was a two-time conference player-of-the-year her junior and senior seasons (1997-98).