James Clar, a former Division I standout and assistant at Nazareth, is just the third head coach in the history of the Hartwick women's volleyball program. He began his coaching duties in August 2012 and enters his 10th season in the fall of 2021.
In the fall of 2019, Clar's Hawks finished the season with a 16-11 overall mark. Hartwick's winning percentage of .593 was the best mark in program history. The Hawks placed fifth in the league standings with a 3-4 mark and Toria Betelak and Colette Maloney each earned Empire 8 Second Team honors.
In 2018, Clar guided his team to an 11-12 record, which was the program's best winning percentage since 2012. The Hawks finished 3-5 in the Empire 8, and Maria Sorriento was named to the E8 Second Team, following up her Co-Rookie of the Year Award from the season before.
In his second year at the helm, Clar had his team in playoff contention into the final weekend of conference competition. The Hawks finished 3-4 in the Empire 8 and among its three victories, they defeated St. John Fisher for the first time in program history.
Clar wasted little time making an impact on the program last season as he led the Hawks to a 15-16 overall mark, tying for the third-most victories in a single season in College history. Over the course of the campaign, Hartwick defeated eventual Empire 8 champion Nazareth, 3-2, but fell just a few points short of earning its first conference tournament berth with closely contested 3-2 setbacks to both Ithaca and St. John Fisher.
In 2011, Clar helped lead a young Nazareth team to its first Empire 8 Championship in five years and its first NCAA Tournament appearance in six seasons. After recording a regular season record of 24-12, Naz earned the second seed in the Empire 8 playoffs defeating third-seeded Stevens in straight sets and then top-seed and host Elmira College to capture the conference crown.
Clar coached four players who received Empire 8 honors in 2011, including freshman middle blocker Maria Allocco, who was tabbed the conference’s Rookie of the Year.
Originally from Rochester, NY, Clar has worked extensively with USA Volleyball and the Rochester Volleyball Club. He has also been an instructor at numerous volleyball camps throughout the United States.
Clar played four seasons for the men’s volleyball program at the University of Hawai’i from 2006-2009, captaining the squad in both his junior and senior seasons. After playing in 21 matches and finishing third on the team in kills during his sophomore campaign, Clar led the team with 3.77 kills per game and 4.49 points per game the following season.
A semi-professional beach volleyball player, Clar is also a NSCA-CPT National Strength and Conditioning Association certified personal trainer.
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