BATON ROUGE – Katie Dickens (Formerly Lindelow), a member of the inaugural LSU Beach Volleyball team and professional beach volleyball player, has been hired as an assistant coach with the LSU Beach Volleyball team, Coach Russell Brock announced Friday.
“We couldn’t be more excited to add Katie to our staff,” Brock said. “Not only does she bring storied experience as both an indoor and beach Tiger, but she is nationally renowned on the junior beach club scene. She is well respected all over the country and we know she will help elevate our ability to identify and recruit top talent to our program.
“The understanding of the recruiting process from the club side will give her a great advantage on our end. There is no doubt that her commitment to developing an elite understanding of our sport as a collegiate player, professional player and club coach and director has prepared her to transition quickly and seamlessly in all aspects of responsibility in college coaching.”
Dickens will join the staff with Coach Brock and assistant Coach Cati Leak, who teamed up with Dickens on the first LSU Beach Volleyball team.
“LSU offered me an incredible experience as a student-athlete, laying a strong foundation for my professional and coaching career,” Dickens said. “I am excited to provide that same opportunity to the players of LSU Beach Volleyball.
“A big part of my character was also developed in the sand at LSU. I have known Russell as a coach and Cati as a teammate, so the opportunity to return home and work alongside them is a dream come true!”
Dickens got her start at LSU as an indoor volleyball player in 2012 where she helped take the Tigers to the NCAA Tournament in 2013 and 2014. Throughout her indoor career in Baton Rouge she was dominant making plays all over the court, amassing 24 double-doubles and showing both her offensive in defensive skills that would allow her to transition well to the beach game.
Stepping into the sand with the Tigers during their inaugural season in 2014, Dickens had immediate success with a 16-3 record. She continued to help the Tigers lay a solid foundation in the sand in 2015 with a 22-13 record and in 2016 with a 15-13 record, playing most of her matches on Court 1. In 2017 Dickens and the Tigers put everything together as a team to go on a program best 24-match win streaks and reach their first NCAA Championship Tournament, seeing Dickens go 28-6 while playing the majority of her matches on Court 3. LSU has not fallen out of the AVCA Top 10 since that 2017 season and LSU has become a mainstay at the NCAA Championship Tournament with appearances there in Gulf Shores every year since 2017.
Following her career at LSU, Dickens moved to Austin, Texas where to train, compete, and coach full-time. She ran Silver Beach Volleyball, one of the largest beach clubs in Texas, serving juniors and adults of all ages and skill levels. Dickens was named the USAV Beach Club Director of the Year in 2022 for her success as a coach.
As a professional beach volleyball player, Dickens made her AVP Main Draw debut in 2018 at the Austin Open. Since then she has continued to compete professionally with 15 top 10 finishes on the AVP Tour across Pro and Gold tournaments.