Staff and Coaches

Kate McHale, Assistant Athletic Director

kmchale@sms.edu I 919-424-4056

 

Kelly Fauth, Varsity Assistant Coach

 

Gary DeJames, Assistant Varsity Coach

 

Colin Murasko, Head JV Coach 
cmurasko@sms.edu

 

Brendan Smith, Assistant JV Coach

 

Robert Guzzo, Head Varsity Coach 
rguzzo@sms.edu

 

Julie Sandridge, Varsity Assistant Golf Coach

 

Virginia "Gina" Minton '82C, Head Varsity Coach
vminton@sms.edu

 

Louisa "Lou" Garvey '82HS '84C, Assistant Varsity Coach 

 

Lisa Gwyn, Head JV Coach

 

Maddie O'Beirne, Head Varsity Coach

 

Kate McHale, Head JV Coach

Kate McHale, Varsity Head Coach

kmchale@sms.edu | 919-424-4056

 

Florrie McCard, Varsity Assistant Coach

fmccard@sms.edu | 919-424-4020

 

Jenny Jessen, Varsity Assistant Coach

jjessen@sms.edu | 919-424-4000

 

Makayla August, Assistant Varsity Coach

maugust@sms.edu | 919-424-4000

 

Colleen Camaione-Edonston, Assistant Varsity Coach

cedmonston@sms.edu | 919-424-4000 

 

Zorayda Rodriguez, Assistant Varsity Coach

zrodriguez@sms.edu | 919-424-4000

 

Originally, from central Ohio, Kayla Scott attended Ohio University, where she studied language arts education, 7th-12th grades. At Ohio University, she was a member of the cross country and track and field teams, specializing in the 3,000-meter steeple chase and the 5,000-meter run. She was team captain for the 2014-2015 and 2015-2016 seasons. Ms. Scott earned a master’s degree in higher education and student affairs from the University of South Carolina in 2018, where she was able to utilize her remaining red-shirt eligibility to participate on the Gamecocks’ cross country and track and field teams. Ms. Scott is excited to help inspire Saint Mary’s School student-athletes to become confident and mentally strong in their sport. 

 

Jennifer Hummel is assistant coach with the Cross-Country and Track and Field teams. Ms. Hummel is a graduate of North Carolina State University, graduating in 1997 and 1999 with degrees in biological science and science education. She is Saint Mary’s science department chair and teaches AP Environmental Science and Chemistry. While living in Valdosta, Georgia, and teaching at a Georgia Independent School Association member school, she began coaching boys’ and girls’ cross-country in 2011 and started their track and field program. The Highland Christian Academy boys eventually went on to win first in region and third in the state of Georgia in 2013 and 2014. Ms. Hummel enjoys coaching because it allows her to see another side of her students that is different from what she sees in the classroom setting.

 

Sandy Merkel DeJames, Ph.D., is co-founder of NC Elite Volleyball Club, and serves as president, master coach and board chair. She has been involved with club volleyball since 2000, and in the Raleigh area since 2003. While coaching, Dr. Merkel DeJames successfully led her teams to qualify for the USAV Junior Olympic National Championships in every season she coached and won several regional and divisional championships. In addition to her club volleyball coaching experience, she has coached numerous collegiate camps throughout Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee, and coached junior high school volleyball in her hometown, Cincinnati, Ohio.  She played high school volleyball for nationally recognized Cincinnati Seton as a setter and outside hitter, leading her team to several GGCL conference, regional and Ohio state championships, while earning all-conference, all-region, and all-state honors.  Collegiately, she was a three sport NCAA Division 1 scholarship athlete; a four-year letter winner and three-time all-conference setter and MVP with the UNC Charlotte women’s varsity volleyball team, MVP of the women’s varsity track team (4 varsity letters), and starting midfielder for the 1995 Conference USA Championship UNC Charlotte women’s varsity soccer team (one varsity letter). She completed her collegiate career holding career and single season school records in assists, digs and service aces, as well as a NCAA Division 1 national ranking of 14th in all-time career assists.  She holds a B.A. in psychology and a Ph.D. in Biology and completed her post-doctoral training at the UNC-Chapel Hill School of Medicine. She has held various executive and leadership positions in the applied biotechnology and life sciences industries primarily focused on strategy, innovation and technology development, has founded 3 companies, and is currently president and CEO of Harmonize Strategy Group, developing and driving corporate, innovation and investment strategy, and providing executive and leadership coaching and training (LinkedIn). She has also served on various boards and advisory committees, currently serving as board member and governance committee chair for the Institute For Emerging Issues at North Carolina State University, a preeminent think tank that brings together individuals and groups to pursue solutions to North Carolina's challenges and strengthen the future competitiveness of the State.

 

Gary DeJames is co-founder of NC Elite Volleyball Club and serves as executive director, master coach, and board member. Mr. DeJames has been involved in coaching club volleyball in the Carolina region since 2001, during which time he coached his teams to 10 Carolina region championships and participation in 11 USAV national championships. He has also coached at numerous high schools in North Carolina including Saint Mary’s School, Sanderson High School, Broughton High School, and Cresset Christian Academy in Durham. He was named Cap-6 Conference Coach of the Year in 2003 (Sanderson High School) and Carolina Christian Conference Coach of the Year in 1998 (Cresset Christian Academy). Before moving to the Carolinas, he coached boys’ high school and JO volleyball in Buffalo, New York. He has been playing volleyball for over 25 years and has won numerous outdoor and indoor events, including a first-place finish at the 2005 USAV Men's Adult National Championships, where he was awarded All-Tournament Team honors. He is a graduate of SUNY Buffalo, New York, where he earned a B.S. in health and wellness with a minor in coaching. He is a certified strength and conditioning specialist (NASM - National Academy of Sports Medicine), and currently works for Milliken & Company as the national field sales director for the healthcare division.

 

Colin Murasko is the head junior varsity volleyball coach. Mr. Murakso holds an M.F.A. in painting and drawing from Claremont Graduate University in California and a B.F.A. in sculpture and drawing from Stephen F. Austin State University in Texas, where he played for the men’s club volleyball team. He also played competitive sand volleyball and elite track and field. Mr. Murasko has held several coaching positions at both day and boarding schools in cross country, track and field, and volleyball. The love of the game keeps Mr. Murasko on the court and field.

 

Varsity Tennis Coach Gina Minton graduated from Saint Mary’s in 1982 and loved playing tennis under Coach Mary Lou Jones. Coach Minton played high school tennis, soccer, and basketball in Wilson at Greenfield school. She has a degree in fitness from AFAA and puts that to use in creating a fitness program for the tennis team. She has been coaching varsity tennis at Saint Mary’s for five years and has loved every minute of it. Being with such a great group of girls makes it special and coaching with two of her good friends makes it an incredible experience every year. As a Saint Mary’s alumna, she enjoys being back on a campus where so many memories and great friendships were built!

 

Louisa ‘Lou’ Garvey ’82HS ’84C is the varsity assistant coach of the Saint Mary’s tennis program. Ms. Garvey, and her daughter, are Saint Mary's alumnae. Ms. Garvey started playing tennis at Saint Mary’s under Coach Mary Lou Jones. Ms. Garvey is thrilled to be coaching at Saint Mary’s again with Gina Minton. Today, Ms. Garvey continues to play with the USTA Women’s League Tennis (4.5) as well as coaching challenge soccer through CASL.

                                          

Lisa Gwyn is the junior varsity tennis head coach. Ms. Gwyn is a Raleigh native who started her playing career at Broughton High School. She is in her fifth year of coaching junior varsity and developing the Saint Mary’s tennis student-athletes. She enjoys being on the Saint Mary’s campus and a part of the athletic staff, as her daughter graduated class of 2019.

 

Born and raised in Raleigh, North Carolina, Guzzo is a proud native North Carolinian.  Upon graduation from Athens Drive High School in 1995, he then earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy from North Carolina State University in 1999. Golf has been a big part of his life since his father introduced him to the game at age 6. He lettered all four years at Athens Drive, making all-conference honors in each of them under Coach Greg Garner and being voted Most Valuable Player in his senior year.  Since 2001, Guzzo has been the Head Golf Professional at Raleigh Golf Association and continues in that capacity.  He began coaching high school golf in 2004 at Cardinal Gibbons High School, and since then, his teams have won 12 conference championships, 7 regional titles, and captured the 2008 2A N.C.H.S.A.A. title.  He has been at the helm of Saint Mary’s Golf Program since 2017.  In his spare time, Guzzo enjoys playing golf with friends and taking walks with his Labrador retriever, Tara.

 

Jeff Krepps, head junior varsity basketball coach, earned a Ph.D. in family therapy in 2004. He works as the director of behavioral health education and research at Campbell University’s School of Osteopathic Medicine. He played basketball, baseball, and football while growing up in New York and Virginia, and he is an avid college basketball fan. Jeff has four daughters, all of whom have played sports. When his youngest two daughters began showing an interest in basketball several years ago, Dr. Kreps worked with I-9 sports and later the Wake County Basketball Association to develop all-girls recreation basketball leagues, as few opportunities existed for girls. As a result, he began coaching girls’ youth basketball and has coached eight seasons. He also coaches youth soccer and has coached youth baseball. He has been the head coach of the junior varsity basketball team at Saint Mary’s since the 2018-2019 season and always looks forward to being on the basketball court.

 

Meredith Primm is the Saints’ lacrosse head coach. She hopes to build on the foundation of success that the girls established in previous seasons and has high hopes for the program. Prior to arriving at Saint Mary’s School, Ms. Primm coached SOUL Lacrosse in Tampa, Fla. She was responsible for building the goalie program curriculum and served as an assistant coach for all age groups. She also worked as an assistant coach for Academy of the Holy Names. Ms. Primm is a graduate of The Benjamin School, where she learned to love the game and helped lead her team to district and conference titles. She was a member of The LaxManiax club team and went on to play college lacrosse at Florida State University. While at FSU, she was a one-year captain and voted the team MVP in her senior season. Ms. Primm is a proud FSU alum and loves to be able to support her beloved Seminoles. She holds a bachelor’s degree in family and child sciences, which she puts to use each day as a member of the student life team at Saint Mary’s School. She is currently pursuing certifications in coaching weightlifting and strength training, which she believes will better her as a coach. She is excited for the future of Saint Mary’s lacrosse and can’t wait to see how the program continues to grow.

 

Originally from Connecticut, Ms. Webb holds a bachelor’s degree in physical education and health from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, where she also played club volleyball and softball. She made her way to Raleigh in 2014 and is currently the director of student life at Saint Mary’s. She started her coaching career during summer camps while at UNC-W, which fueled her passion to study sport leadership in graduate school at Virginia Commonwealth University. Ms. Webb brings an array of knowledge and experience to our athletic program from coaching at the middle school to high school levels in various sports including volleyball, basketball and softball. Since coaching at Saint Mary’s, she has enjoyed getting to know the girls in a different arena at in addition to giving full support and sole focus to the development and success of these young women.

 

Softball Assistant Coach Robbie Cox hails from Greenville, North Carolina, and has lived in Raleigh since 1983. He holds a B.A. from Duke University and a J.D. degree from UNC-Chapel Hill. He played varsity baseball at Duke, where he started all four years in the outfield and was selected Second Team All ACC in 1975. He played in the Shenandoah Valley Summer League and in Baton Rouge for a Class A minor league team upon graduation. Coach Cox has coached baseball and softball at all levels from T ball through high school. He started helping the SMS softball team in 2018 and enjoys working with the girls on improving their fundamentals of batting, fielding and base running. After retiring from law practice, he began a second career at Merrill Lynch in Raleigh. He and his wife, Catherine Cox, have been involved at Saint Mary’s for years having had a daughter graduate from SMS in 2008.

 

 

 

Colleen Camaione-Edmonston is Saint Mary’s assistant soccer coach. A Connecticut native, Coach Camaione-Edmonston has coached soccer since she was in high school. Building young programs in clubs, high schools, and colleges is always where she found joy. Holding a national license through the NSCAA, she started programs at Wilson High School and Louisa High School in Virginia, coached both boys and girls at Myers Park High School, in Charlotte, coached classic and challenge level teams for the Richmond, Virginia, Capitals; the Charlotte United Futbol Club; and CASL/NCFC. Teaching kids from age three to 18, Coach Camaione-Edmonston has coached at camps and clinics up and down the East Coast and directed the recreational soccer program for the town of Tarboro, North Carolina. Yet, her oldest players were collegiate athletes when she was an assistant coach at Randolph-Macon College (DIII) and at the University of Richmond (DI). Her love of soccer began at age five, and she grew to play for regional select teams, for the CT State ODP team, and earned All-State and All-Conference honors at E.O. Smith High School. While at Davidson College, she was an English major, a four-year soccer starter, a senior captain, and an award winner, earning the Class of ‘94 Award. Her highest level of play was at the semi-pro level for the Hampton Roads Piranhas in the W-League. A career-long educator, Coach Camaione-Edmonston holds a master’s in education from the Curry School at The University of Virginia. She has taught students from pre-school through college in North Carolina and Virginia public schools, at Louisburg College, at Episcopalian middle schools (Trinity in Charlotte and St. Timothy’s in Raleigh), and was the Director of Christian Education at Howard Memorial Presbyterian Church. For the eighth year, Ms. Camaione-Edmonston spends her days in seventh grade classrooms teaching literature and writing and is lucky to have taught many Saint Mary’s Saints. In the fall, she coaches the varsity boys’ soccer team at St. Timothy’s School. No stranger to campus, Coach Camaione-Edmonston assisted Coach Lunger last season and spent previous years in the theater watching her eldest son, Patrick, act alongside Saint Mary’s talented actors.

 

Loftin Johnson is a 2008 graduate of Saint Mary’s School, where she was a boarding student. She played varsity tennis, basketball, and soccer at Saint Mary’s, and played club soccer and club tennis at the University of Georgia where she graduated with a degree in recreation and leisure studies. After college, she moved to Nashville, Tenn., and became a personal trainer. She has certifications in personal training, group fitness, spin, and TRX. She moved to Raleigh in 2018 and is thrilled to be back on Nimocks Field coaching JV soccer. With a passion for sports and fitness, she is excited to lead Triangle Fitness at Saint Mary’s during the fall and winter seasons.