Honors & Accomplishments
• Academic All-Big 12 selection (2012, 2013)
Coaching Experience
• Associate Head Coach, Cornell University (2020-present)
• Assistant Coach, Cornell University (2013-20)
Education
• B.A., Marketing, Iowa State University (2012)
At Cornell
Caitlin Mahoney Hager was named an assistant coach prior to the 2013 season and was promoted to associate head coach prior to the 2020 campaign. On the court, Hager trains the Big Red’s defensive specialists in addition to working on team passing and team defensive schemes.
In her five seasons as the top assistant, Hager helped transform the Big Red into a team that perennially finishes in the top tier of the Ivy League, finishing third in the conference in three-consecutive seasons from 2017-19. Cornell has constantly improved in each of the last three years in which it has competed (2020 season canceled due to COVID-19 pandemic), culminating with its best season since 2006 in 2019. The Big Red finished the 2019 season with a 17-6 overall record, including an 8-4 mark in conference play. The team's 17 wins marked the most since 2006 when the team won 18 matches, and the Big Red went on an 11-match win streak over the middle portion of the season. The last time Cornell stacked that many wins was 2003. The span of three-straight third-place Ivy League finishes marks the best seasons for the Big Red since the team won three conference titles followed by a second-place finish from 2003-06.
Hager was instrumental in helping libero Kiley McPeek '18 earn first-team All-Ivy honors, while libero Natasha Rowland ’15 became Cornell’s first-ever Ivy League Defensive Player of the Year, earning the program’s first major Ivy award in volleyball since Liz Bishop '06 was named Player of the Year in 2006. Libero Lily Barber '20 was also named second-team All-Ivy in 2019 after receiving honorable mention accolades in 2018. With Hager's help, Barber became the ninth player in Cornell volleyball history to amass 1,000 digs for her career. She is also only the second Big Red player ever to collect 1,000 digs and 300 assists during her time in a Cornell uniform (Jen Strazza '92).
In her eight seasons on East Hill, Hager has helped the Big Red's defensive specialists take over five spots among the top-15 in Cornell history for digs in a single season. Additionally, six of her liberos have finished the season ranked among the top six in the Ivy League for digs per set.
Playing Career
A two-time Academic All-Big 12 selection, Hager played for the Cyclones from 2008-11, helping the team to four NCAA tournament appearances, including a berth to the Sweet Sixteen and a pair of trips to the Elite Eight. She left Iowa State as the 12th-most active player in program history, seeing action in 413 sets and 120 matches as the team’s defensive specialist/libero.
Following her collegiate career, Hager embarked on a professional volleyball career both in the United States and overseas. She played in Innsbruck, Austria for the club VC Tirol, serving as team captain. Hager also played five seasons with Team Iowa Ice, which was coached by Cornell head coach Trudy Vande Berg. Team Iowa Ice won the Premier Volleyball League title in 2013 while finishing as the runner-up in 2012, 2016, and 2017.
Hager attended Marian High School, where she earned all-metro and all-state first-team honors. She graduated as the Nebraska state record holder for service aces in a match, in a season, and in a career.
Personal
Hager is a native of Omaha, Neb. She currently resides in Ithaca, N.Y. with her husband, Frank Hager '12, who serves as an assistant baseball coach at Cornell, and her daughter, Elle.
*Updated August 2021
