Former Blue Devil Quincy will be the new leader of the Knox College women’s volleyball program.
Maliah Blackmore has been named Knox College’s volleyball coach and senior women’s coach. Knox College Director of Athletics Corey Goff announced the move on Monday.
Most recently, Blackmore was an assistant volleyball coach at Kansas Wesleyan University. She helped lead the Coyotes to the opening round of the NAIA National Championship in 2023.
“We are pleased to announce the addition of Malia to the Prairie Fire team,” Goff said. “Her dedication to student development, combined with her extensive knowledge and recruiting experience as well as her passion for the game, makes her a valuable asset to our program and a welcome addition to the Knox community.”
Blackmore arrives at Kansas Wesleyan after spending the 2021 and 2022 seasons as head coach at Hannibal LaGrange University (HLGU) where she led the Trojans to 25 wins. She was named the 2021 American Midwest Conference (AMC) Coach of the Year, leading HLGU to improve by nine wins from the previous season. It also helped HLGU achieve its best record in the past 15 years.
“I would like to thank Director of Athletics Corey Goff, the search committee, and Knox College for giving me the opportunity to lead the volleyball program,” Blackmore said.
“I’m excited to be part of a school that welcomes and cares about its students. I can’t wait to build this program and help our volleyball players become great student-athletes. I want our student-athletes to demonstrate their drive for success on and off the court.”
Before becoming the head coach at Hannibal LaGrange, Blackmore was a graduate assistant for the Trojans for one season in 2020.
Prior to arriving at HLGU, Blackmore played four seasons at Lincoln Christian University (LCU) where she was named All-Conference Second Team All-Conference (AII) in 2016 and 2017, followed by First Team All-Conference selections in 2018 and 2019. AII Setter of the Year 2019.
She was selected to the AII All-Tournament tournament all four years at Lincoln Christian. She finished her career ranked third all-time in assists at LCU. While at LCU, the women’s volleyball team qualified for the NAIA National Volleyball Championships twice.
Blackmore played for Quincy High School in nearby Quincy, where he was a three-year starter. As a senior, she led Illinois Class 4A high school in assists.
She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Communications from Lincoln Christian University, and a Master’s degree in Organizational Leadership in Business from HLGU.