Thais Baziquetto-Allen
Head Coach

Baziquetto-Allen begins her first season with the Eagles in 2025. She arrives at FGCU following an exceptional tenure at Florida SouthWestern State College, where she became the first head coach in NJCAA Division I history to lead her program to three consecutive National Championships.

Under her leadership, the FSW Buccaneers amassed an impressive 145-25 (.853) overall record, including a dominant 65-5 (.929) mark in conference play.

“Thais’ passion, experience, commitment to excellence and connection to the Southwest Florida community will champion FGCU volleyball’s continued success,” Hargis said.

While at FSW, Baziquetto-Allen was named NJCAA National Coach of the Year in three straight seasons (2022-24) and coached three consecutive NJCAA National Players of the Year including 2024 Eagle Barbara Koehler and current Eagle Julija Grubisic-Cabo.

In her final three seasons with the Bucs, Baziquetto-Allen won as many National Championships (3) as total losses with an 84-3 overall record.

During her six years with the Bucs she recruited and coached 10 NJCAA All-Americans including eight 1st Team All-Americans. In 2020 she earned the AVCA Diversity Award and in 2023 she was named the AVCA Volleydictorian for her work both with her program as well as the AVCA.

Before her time at FSW, Baziquetto-Allen was the head coach at Seward County Community College in Liberal, Kansas, where she guided the Lady Saints to an 86-28 (.754) record over three seasons.

She was one of just three NJCAA coaches to receive the AVCA Thirty Under 30 Award in 2017, recognizing the sport’s rising coaching talent. Baziquetto-Allen began her coaching career as an Assistant Coach at Lamar Community College in Colorado.

In nine years as an NJCAA head coach, Baziquetto-Allen had an all-time record of 231-53 and a 109-10 in conference play with seven Conference Championships. Along with success on the court, Baziquetto-Allen’s teams won nine consecutive AVCA Team Academic Awards for their accomplishments in the classroom.

A native of Guarulhos, São Paulo, Brazil, Baziquetto-Allen played collegiately at Western New Mexico University and St. Petersburg College, earning Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference All-Academic honors.

She resides in Cape Coral with her husband, Roy Allen, and their dogs, Kai and Ace.

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Taylor Svehla
Assistant Coach

Taylor Svehla joins Florida Gulf Coast University volleyball in March, 2025 as the assistant coach under head coach Thais Baziquetto-Allen. Svehla joins the Eagles from Western Carolina where she spent three years as Associate Head Coach & Recruiting Coordinator  with the Catamounts.

During the 2024 season, Svehla  propelled  WCU on the defensive end led by junior Janelle Blue who finished third in the league with 111 blocks averaging 1.09 per set. Blue along with Logan Carr helped lead the Catamounts block as one of three teams from the SoCon to have a pair of players in top 10 in blocks. Blue posted 14 blocks in a five-set win over American and had multiple blocks in 27 matches as Carr finished with 25 matches tallying a pair of blocks. Blue finished with 20 solo and 91 assisted blocks, while Carr had 19 solo stops and 65 assisted. Newcomer Samantha Jo Mikosky filled up the defensive stat sheet with 73 stops including 10 solo. As a team, WCU finished second in the conference in blocks/set at 2.29.

In her second season in Cullowhee, she helped guide WCU on the defensive end by coaching senior Eden Punch ,who moved into the top 10 in the program's record book for blocks. Punch moved into 10th in program history in blocks (289), ninth in block assists (225) and 12th in solo blocks (64). Freshman Logan Carr had a strong debut season on the defensive end for WCU with 90 blocks finishing among the top 10 in the SoCon in rejections. Carr was named to the league's All-Freshman team at the conclusion of the 2023 season. As a team, the Catamounts were third in the league in blocks/set at 1.92. In late October, WCU handed previously unbeaten The Citadel its first loss of the 2023 season in a five-set triumph in Cullowhee.

In her first season with the Catamounts, Svehla helped WCU become the top blocking team in the Southern Conference with 2.33 blocks per set. Svehla mentored Eden Punch, who led the league with 129 total blocks and ranked fourth with 1.06 blocks per set. During Svehla's first season, the Catamounts reached the 20-win mark for the first time since the 2002 season and fifth-year senior Merry Gebel earned AVCA All-American and SoCon Player of the Year honors. Additionally, the Catamounts appeared in the postseason for the first time in program history, advancing to the quarterfinal round of the NIVC Tournament.

Svehla spent the 2021 season at Butler in Indianapolis, Ind., where she was a volunteer assistant coach for the Bulldogs working under head coach Sharon Clark. While at Butler, Svehla worked with All-Big East and All-Region honorable mention middle blocker Melody Davidson and helped with drills during team and individual practices. She was also in charge of team operations and fan outreach. 
 
Prior to her tenure at Butler, Svehla was a graduate assistant coach at South Dakota State where she worked under head coach Dan Georgalas. As a member of the Jackrabbit staff, she worked with the middle blockers and developed scouting reports, game plans and blocking schemes. Off the court, she coordinated team travel, organized community service opportunities and helped with social media accounts.
 
Originally from Lincoln, Neb., and a graduate of South Forsyth High on Cumming, Ga., Svehla was an accomplished player at Georgia College & State University, earning AVCA Honorable Mention All-American accolades as well as the Peach Belt Player of the Year in 2018. She was a two-time first team All-Peach Belt selection in 2017 and 2018 and was the league's Freshman of the Year in 2015. Svehla concluded her career with 1,276 kills and 384 blocks and is the program record-holder in both categories.
 
She earned her Bachelor of Science in Mathematics from GCSU in 2019, and a Master of Science in Sport & Recreation Administration from SDSU in 2021.

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Cooper Kemnitz
Assistant Coach

Cooper Kemnitz has joined Florida Gulf Coast University volleyball as an assistant coach under head coach Thais Baziquetto-Allen.

Kemnitz arrives in Fort Myers following a standout 2025 season as assistant coach with the men’s volleyball program at Carthage College in Kenosha, Wisconsin. The team posted a 23-4 overall record, went 9-1 in conference play, earned a top-five national ranking and secured a berth in the NCAA Division III Tournament.

A South Dakota native, Kemnitz is the founder and director of the Madison Inferno Volleyball Club, established in 2020. Since its inception, the club has gained recognition for its developmental approach and consistent production of college-level talent. Kemnitz has coached the U16 and U18 national teams while leading the club’s coaching education, athlete development pathways and recruitment strategies.

Under his leadership, Inferno athletes have regularly moved on to collegiate programs, and the club has become known for its commitment to competitive excellence and community involvement.

Before Carthage, Kemnitz served as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at Edgewood College in Madison, Wisconsin, from 2020 to 2023. He specialized in serve receive and backcourt defense while contributing to the foundation of the program.

During that same period, he also held the position of head coach and program lead for the NCR All-Stars in Minneapolis. From 2021 to 2024, he led the U17 boys’ team at the USA All-Stars Tournament, emphasizing technical development, holistic growth and a team-first mentality rooted in discipline and hard work.

Kemnitz’s contributions to the sport have earned national and state recognition. He was named the 2024 American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Director of the Year and received a Wisconsin State Legislative Citation for his efforts to expand boys’ volleyball in Dane County.
As a player, Kemnitz competed as a libero with Team USA in Anaheim, California, and earned All-Conference honors in 2015, 2016 and 2017 while playing collegiately at South Dakota State University.

While at South Dakota, he also served as a student-assistant coach for the women’s team and founded the men’s club program, acting as its president and head coach. He graduated in 2018 with a bachelor’s degree in community and public health.