Ole Miss volleyball coach Kayla Banwarth announced the latest addition of her staff this week with the hire of Kent Nitta as Director of Operations.
Nitta has spent the last three seasons in the same role at Utah Valley State in Orem, Utah. He also held the role during the 2016 season and was an assistant coach with the Wolverines from 1990-1996. In this position, Nitta coordinated multiple elements with the program, including travel and practice scheduling/time management.
“We feel very fortunate to add Kent to our staff,” Banwarth said. “He is well experienced when it comes to managing a team. On top of that, he has a huge passion for volleyball. He will absolutely be an asset to our program in more ways than one.”
After his first stop in Orem, Nitta served as a volunteer assistant coach at BYU for one season and then spent time away from the industry as the Vice President of Business Development at Pronia Capital Group until 2015. In that role, he held a board seat for multiple businesses and foundations and was primarily responsible for the management of operating companies and evaluations with the group’s clientele.
“I am beyond excited to join the Ole Miss volleyball staff,” Nitta said. “I am thankful to Kayla [Banwarth] for the opportunity to build upon her vision for the volleyball program. I look forward to getting out to Oxford and embracing the Ole Miss family!”
Nitta then returned to volleyball staff at UVU for the 2016 campaign, before transitioning into a head coaching role at Timpview High School in Provo. He returned to Utah Valley in 2018, and while handling his duties with the Wolverines, Kent has also served as the lead club coach for Club V Volleyball for the last four years.
In addition to handling all of the day-to-day operations with the program, Nitta will also serve as the official liaison between the coaching staff and team and the academic, athlete development, marketing, communications, compliance, and game management crews with the volleyball program.
Banwarth has made her third hire in Nitta, who joins assistant coaches Beau Lawler, and Maggie Scott added in late January.
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