Vlkovic completed her first season as an assistant coach to the Catamounts staff for the 2024 season. Vlkovic was a three-year volleyball letter-winner at Georgia State.
In her debut season in Cullowhee, Vlkovic worked with the back row defenders and saw Eda Yalcinkaya lead the defense with 404 digs averaging 3.96 digs/set. WCU as a team finished inside the top 10 nationally with 17.94 digs/set as a team. The Catamounts had six players with 100+ digs led by Yalcinkaya. In a five-set win over The Citadel, the Catamount defense finished with 114 digs the most by a WCU team since the 2011 season and the 10th most digs in program history.
“I am excited to add Ava to our coaching staff,” commented head coach Karen Glover. “She is a promising young coach, and I think she will do a great job working with our backcourt defenders.”
During her three seasons with the Panthers, she played 255 sets in 74 matches within the Sun Belt Conference. A defensive specialist and libero by trade, she totaled 717 career digs including a single-season high 394 that paced GSU in 2021, the lone Panther to eclipse 300 digs that season. She also led the way for Georgia State during her freshman season with 271 digs in 2020.
Vlkovic finished with 144 assists and 62 aces throughout her career with the Panthers, including a team-best 24 aces in 2020 and 25 in 2021, good enough for second-best on the squad. In the classroom, she was honored with the Dean’s List each year she competed on the court for GSU.
After her time on the court at Georgia State, she spent the 2023 fall season as the assistant coach for her prep alma mater at Pope High School where the team finished second in the state and was a regional champion. In the spring season, Vlkovic coached the A5 18-3 Scott team that won the Under Armor 18U National Championship.
Vlkovic graduated magma cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in public policy with a concentration in nonprofit management from Georgia State in May 2024.
"I am thrilled to join the Western Carolina volleyball family,” said Vlkovic. "I am thankful to Coach Glover for this opportunity and for welcoming me into the program. I'm excited to bring my enthusiasm, expertise, and positivity to the team, enhancing the community's collective strength."
Before her collegiate career with Georgia State, she had a successful four-year prep career at Pope High under head coach Shawn Darling. Vlkovic was part of a team that helped Pope to the 2018 State Championship while individually ranking inside the top 15 dig leaders for Georgia High Schools. She also claimed All-State and Marietta Daily Journal All-County Second Team honors during her senior season.
