Valerie Sutton - Volleyball Coach - Mercer University Athletics

Valerie Sutton

Title:
Assistant Coach
Email:
nichol_v@mercer.edu

An accomplished NCAA Division I student-athlete, as well as a 4-year coaching veteran with previous stops at two other collegiate institutions, Valerie Sutton begins her second year at Mercer in 2024-25 as an assistant coach for the Bears. Sutton joined the coaching staff in Macon in April 2023 after spending the previous season in a similar role at Coastal Carolina.

Sutton was an integral part of a coaching staff in Conway, S.C., that helped pace the Chanticleers to a 17-win season in 2022, including nine league victories on the way to a runner-up finish in the Sun Belt Conference’s East Division standings. CCU found itself listed among national leaders with an impressive .235 hitting percentage, and registered a handful of notable victories along the way, including an early-season shutout of Atlantic Coast Conference foe Virginia Tech. That squad also included a pair of all-conference standouts, as well as a trio of CoSIDA Academic All-District honorees.

Prior to making the move to the coast, Sutton laid the foundation for her future coaching success when she served as an assistant coach at McCutcheon (Ind.) High School and helped pace the Mavericks to a 30-6 clip and the first state championship in program history. McCutcheon yielded just 22 sets on the season and turned in 26 shutout victories, while also closing out the magical season with a 12-match win streak. The Mavericks dropped just two sets in their 7-match state playoff run.

A native of Normal, Ill., Sutton (then Valerie Nichol) was a two-time all-American at Purdue, logging playing time in 132 matches (455 games) from 2011-14 while registering a .215 career hitting percentage to go along with 903 kills, 2,149 assists, 623 digs, 213 blocks and 57 service aces. She tallied 30 double-doubles and four triple-doubles across her illustrious collegiate career, and was an Academic All-Big Ten selection as both a junior and a senior.

A member of the USA National Collegiate A2 Team in 2012 and 2013, Sutton was also a member of the USA College National Team U22 that competed in Europe in the 2014 Global Challenge. She was also invited to USA National Team Training Camp in 2017. Nichol also enjoyed an eight-year professional career as a member of organizations in Germany, Poland, Puerto Rico and the United States.

Sutton earned her bachelor’s degree in movement and sport science from Purdue in 2015. She was married to Mercer head coach Chad Sutton in 2023.\

THE SUTTON FILE
Coaching Experience
2020	Purdue (Volunteer Assistant Coach)
2021	McCutcheon (Ind.) High School (Assistant Coach)
2022	Coastal Carolina (Assistant Coach)
2023-Present	Mercer (Assistant Coach)

Playing Experience
Two-time all-American at Purdue. Played in 132 matches (455) games from 2011-14. Experience in USA National Team organization, while also playing eight years on the professional level in four countries.

Education
Bachelor's degree in movement and sport science (Purdue, 2015).