Dylan Hough enters his seventh season with the Jacksonville University beach volleyball coaching staff in 2027 after returning to JU in October 2020. He was elevated to head coach in July 2021. This is Hough’s second stint at Jacksonville after previously serving as a volunteer assistant coach with the program from 2016-17.
2026 Season
Hough led Jacksonville to a 17-19 record and the winningest season in program history, surpassing the previous record of 15 victories. The Dolphins also established a program-record six-match winning streak and opened the year with eight consecutive victories at neutral sites.
Jacksonville earned the first ASUN Championship opening-round victory in program history with a 3-2 reverse-sweep win over North Alabama. The Dolphins later defeated Eastern Kentucky, 3-0, to advance to the ASUN semifinals for the first time since 2018.
JU’s season included notable victories over No. 15 FIU, FGCU, UNCW and College of Charleston.
Claire Mrukowski earned First Team All-ASUN honors, while Megan Hair was named Second Team All-ASUN and selected to the ASUN All-Freshman Team. Katie Martinez was named the ASUN Scholar-Athlete of the Year after earning 19 victories and finishing her career with 55 wins, the third-most in program history. Maddie Fiedler also earned ASUN All-Freshman Team recognition.
Martinez and Fiedler were named ASUN Pair of the Week during the season, while Jacksonville placed a program-record six student-athletes on the Academic All-ASUN Team.
2025 Season
Hough guided the Dolphins to a 12-23 overall record during the 2025 season. Jacksonville advanced to the second round of the ASUN Championship, where the Dolphins earned one point in their matchup against Austin Peay before falling 3-1.
2024 Season
Hough guided Jacksonville to 15 victories, marking the third consecutive season in which the Dolphins established a new program record for wins. JU finished the year ranked No. 36 in the TruVolley.com rankings.
Under Hough’s leadership, Jacksonville received the first AVCA Pairs National Championship bid in program history. He also coached two different pairs that appeared in the NCAA Top 20 positional pair rankings.
Emily Kubicsko and Jenna McNamara were selected to the Preseason All-ASUN Team, and both surpassed 50 career victories during the season. Claire Mrukowski earned a spot on the ASUN All-Freshman Team, while Anna Erickson and Olivia Szyszkiewicz were named to the ASUN All-Academic Team.
The Dolphins received the JAXPY Award for the highest team GPA and were also presented with the JAXPY Philanthropy Award.
2023 Season
Hough led the Dolphins to a then-program-record 13 victories, including a program-best nine wins at home. Jacksonville earned the No. 5 seed in the ASUN Championship and recorded its first conference tournament victory since 2018.
During the season, Hough surpassed Julie Darty-Dennis to become the winningest head coach in program history. Jacksonville also climbed 33 positions in the final collegiate beach volleyball national rankings, moving from No. 71 in 2022 to No. 38 in 2023.
Jenna McNamara and Emily Kubicsko established the program’s single-season pair wins record and earned Second Team All-ASUN recognition.
Jacksonville finished with the second-highest team GPA on campus and was named to the AVCA Honor Roll, which recognizes programs ranking among the top 20 percent nationally in team GPA. The Dolphins also won the department’s annual SAAC “Phin Cup” competition for the second consecutive year.
2022 Season
Hough guided Jacksonville to a then-program-record 10 victories. The Dolphins also earned their first win over a Power Five opponent since 2015 with a victory over Nebraska.
Two Jacksonville freshmen established the program’s freshman wins record with 17 victories. The Dolphins also had two pairs finish with 17 and 15 wins, respectively, the program’s two highest pair-win totals since 2015.
Shaylee Befus was selected to the ASUN All-Academic Team and was recognized as an NSCA All-American. Jacksonville recorded the highest team GPA on campus and earned a place on the AVCA Honor Roll for ranking among the top 20 percent nationally.
The Dolphins also won the department’s annual SAAC “Phin Cup” competition.
2021 Season
Hough was hired as the youngest NCAA Division I beach volleyball coach in the country at the time.
Morgan Dees, Shaylee Befus and Giao Huynh earned ASUN All-Academic Team recognition. Jacksonville posted the highest team GPA on campus and was named to the AVCA Honor Roll after finishing among the top 20 percent nationally.
Hough was also named a recipient of the AVCA Thirty Under 30 Award.
A 2010 graduate of Gulf Coast High School in Naples, Florida, Hough won a national championship as a player at the 2016 USA Volleyball Adult Open Championships.
