Laura Leaton is in her third year on the Boilermaker coaching staff. Leaton's duties include on-court training, recruiting and coordinating Purdue's involvement in the community.
"I am really excited about this opportunity to coach at Purdue and in the Big Ten," Leaton says. "We have a chance to step in and make big improvements, and to be a part of that is exciting. The resources and support the volleyball program has is phenomenal, and I have no doubt that we can be successful."
Leaton was most recently the head coach at the University of Southwestern Louisana. She guided the Lady Cajuns for three years, starting in 1996, and compiled a 49-53 record at the helm of the program. During her tenure, Leaton led the Lady Cajuns to the Sun Belt Conference Tournament for the first time in six years, advancing to the semifinals for the first time in school history.
Prior to taking the reins at USL, Leaton worked as an assistant coach at the University of Arkansas (1993-95), where she prepared the program for its inaugural season. Her duties included recruiting, scheduling, running practices and creating fund-raisers.
Leaton also coached on the junior college level at Cabrillo College in Aptos, Calif., in 1990 and ?92, and served as a site director for the Nike/Davis Volleyball Festival, the largest U.S.A.V. junior volleyball tournament in the United States, in 1993 and '95.
Leaton began her collegiate career at UC Santa Barbara, where she played outside hitter and defensive specialist for the nationally-ranked Gaucho program. She transferred to Mississippi in 1991, and completed her career with the Rebels. She received her B.A. in sociology in 1992 and a master?s of education/physical education from Arkansas in 1995.
Born in Memphis, Tenn., and raised in Los Angeles, Leaton now resides in West Lafayette, Ind.