Former standout Great Dane Ashley Castellana has returned to her alma mater as a volunteer assistant coach and enters her second season in 2016.
“We are thrilled to have Ashley Castellana return to UAlbany as a volleyball staff member,” said UAlbany head coach MJ Engstrom. “She is the most competitive player I’ve ever coached here and she brings a wealth of knowledge to the court. I know our young team will benefit from having one of the program’s legacy players around on a regular basis.”
Castellana, then Ashley DeNeal, graduated as one of the top players in UAlbany history. Switching between libero and outside hitter in her career, DeNeal left the Great Danes all-time leader in digs with 1,915, adding 189 service aces and 811 kills. Her dig and service ace tallies currently stand second all-time in UAlbany volleyball history.
She earned numerous conference awards, including 2005 America East Defensive Specialist of the Year and 2003 America East Rookie of the Year. She was a two-time America East All-Conference First Team and All-Academic Team player in 2005 and 2006 and led the league in digs and digs per set in 2005.
A graduate of UAlbany in 2007, she led the Great Danes to three-consecutive league regular season titles and America East Tournament titles in 2004 and 2006, the program’s first-ever Division I conference championships.
She lives with her husband, Michael, and her daughter, Isabella.
