Karlee Lursen enters her first season as director of volleyball operations at Illinois State in 2016.

Lursen comes to Illinois State from Belmont, where she recently finished work on a master’s degree. She served as a graduate assistant in Belmont’s media relations office, where she was the primary contact for the school’s volleyball and women’s basketball teams. Lursen simultaneously served an internship with Belmont’s marketing and game day promotion staff while at Belmont.

Lursen is a former member of the Southeast Missouri State volleyball team, where she was a standout outside hitter and perennial member of the SEMO and Ohio Valley Conference academic honor rolls. While at SEMO, she also served an internship in the school’s sports information office.

Lursen comes to Illinois State with coaching experience at multiple levels. She has served as a head volleyball coach at the middle school and club levels. She served as an assistant coach at Hamline (Minn.) University in 2013-14.

A native of Apple Valley, Minnesota, Lursen earned her bachelor’s degree in mass communication at SEMO and her master’s degree in sport administration at Belmont.