SLU went 16-16 and lost in the second round of the Atlantic 10 Tournament last season. (Photo: Thomas Grove)

The Saint Louis University women’s volleyball program made a couple of new additions this week.

First, SLU added a new assistant coach in Britni Jaskot. Then, the Billikens added a new player in outside hitter Evelyn Fitz-Hale.

Jaskot comes to SLU from Fairleigh Dickinson University, where she was an assistant coach during the 2023 season. She spent two years as Fairleigh Dickinson’s graduate assistant – including the 2022 campaign when the Knights achieved program firsts by winning the Northeast Conference Championship title and playing in the NCAA Tournament – then served a short stint as Director of Volleyball Operations at Rutgers before returning to FDU last season. Jaskot also has been head coach at D.I.G.S. Volleyball Club and a student assistant men’s volleyball coach at her alma mater, Kean University.

As a four-year volleyball student-athlete at Kean, Jaskot played on Cougars teams that made NCAA Tournament appearances and won conference championships in 2017 and 2018. The 2017 team registered 28 wins, the third-highest victory total in program history. Jaskot was team captain in her senior season.

Jaskot earned a bachelor’s degree in exercise science at Kean and a master’s degree in sport management at FDU.

“We are thrilled to welcome Britni to our team,” SLU head coach Andrea Beaty said. “She brings a vast amount of experience in operations and logistics, which will have a tremendous impact on our program. Her skills as a former setter and experience coaching defensive systems will bring a unique perspective that will create more opportunities for our women to grow their game.”

Fitz-Hale will join the Billikens as a grad student and graduating last spring as summa cum laude at Converse University in Spartanburg, S.C., with a bachelor’s degree in biology.

The 6-foot-1 OH played the past two seasons at Converse after transferring from Arkansas Tech, where she was a member of the 2021 Great American Conference championship squad.

In 57 career matches at Converse, Fitz-Hale amassed 510 kills, 505 digs and 71 blocks. She led the 2023 Valkyries with 3.41 points and 2.94 kills per set and was second with 2.40 digs per set. Fitz-Hale was the 2023-24 Converse University Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year, earned 2023 College Sports Communicators Academic All-District plaudits, and received the Conference Carolinas Academic Honor both years.

Fitz-Hale was a 2018 All-Region and All-Star selection and team captain as a prep player at Northside Christian Academy. She was a Southeast Alliance Volleyball League All-Region performer as a member of Magnum Volleyball Club.

Fitz-Hale’s career goal is to become a physician assistant.

“We are ecstatic to be adding Evelyn to our roster,” Beaty said. “Her experience, competitive edge and care for others greatly align with our culture. Through the recruiting process, we appreciated her approach and dedication to having one season to make a difference, and we are thrilled to see it in action.”

SLU will begin training camp in two weeks to get ready for the 2024 season, which will open the weekend of August 30 and 31 at the A-State Invitational (Arkansas State) in Jonesboro, Ark.

The Billikens’ home opener will come the following weekend, when SLU hosts the Billiken Invitational at the Chaifetz Pavilion on September 5. SLU will play Army, Xavier, and Illinois State in three separate matches that weekend.

DateTimeAtOpponentLocationTournament
August 30, 2024 (Friday)10 amNeutralMississippiJonesboro, Ark.A-State Invitational
August 30, 2024 (Friday)4 pmNeutralSoutheast Missouri StateJonesboro, Ark.A-State Invitational
August 31, 2024 (Saturday)2 pmAwayArkansas StateJonesboro, Ark.A-State Invitational
September 5, 2024 (Thursday)6 pmHomeArmySt. Louis, Mo. / Chaifetz PavilionBilliken Invitational
September 6, 2024 (Friday)11 amNeutralXavier vs. Illinois StateSt. Louis, Mo. / Chaifetz PavilionBilliken Invitational
September 6, 2024 (Friday)4 pmNeutralIllinois State vs. ArmySt. Louis, Mo. / Chaifetz PavilionBilliken Invitational
September 6, 2024 (Friday)7 pmHomeXavierSt. Louis, Mo. / Chaifetz PavilionBilliken Invitational
September 7, 2024 (Saturday)11:30 amNeutralArmy vs. XavierSt. Louis, Mo. / Chaifetz PavilionBilliken Invitational
September 7, 2024 (Saturday)2:30 pmHomeIllinois StateSt. Louis, Mo. / Chaifetz PavilionBilliken Invitational
September 12, 2024 (Thursday)3 pmNeutralWeber StateSpringfield, Mo.Dr. Mary Jo Wynn Invitational
September 13, 2024 (Friday)3 pmNeutralUT ArlingtonSpringfield, Mo.Dr. Mary Jo Wynn Invitational
September 14, 2024 (Saturday)1 pmAwayMissouri StateSpringfield, Mo.Dr. Mary Jo Wynn Invitational
September 19, 2024 (Thursday)3 pmNeutralDrakeCoralville, IowaHawkeye Invite II
September 20, 2024 (Friday)6 pmAwayIowaCoralville, IowaHawkeye Invite II
September 21, 2024 (Saturday)11 amNeutralSouth DakotaCoralville, IowaHawkeye Invite II
September 27, 2024 (Friday)4 pm CTAwayFordhamBronx, N.Y.
September 28, 2024 (Saturday)1 pm CTAwayFordhamBronx, N.Y.
October 1, 2024 (Tuesday)6 pmAwayLoyola ChicagoChicago, Ill.
October 4, 2024 (Friday)6 pmHomeDuquesneSt. Louis, Mo. / Chaifetz Pavilion
October 5, 2024 (Saturday)2 pmHomeDuquesneSt. Louis, Mo. / Chaifetz Pavilion
October 11, 2024 (Friday)AwayVCURichmond, Va.
October 12, 2024 (Saturday)AwayVCURichmond, Va.
October 18, 2024 (Friday)6 pmHomeDavidsonSt. Louis, Mo. / Chaifetz Pavilion
October 19, 2024 (Saturday)2 pmHomeDavidsonSt. Louis, Mo. / Chaifetz Pavilion
October 24, 2024 (Thursday)6 pm CTAwayRhode IslandKingston, R.I.
October 25, 2024 (Friday)6 pm CTAwayRhode IslandKingston, R.I.
October 29, 2024 (Tuesday)6 pmHomeLoyola ChicagoSt. Louis, Mo. / Chaifetz Pavilion
November 1, 2024 (Friday)5 pm CTAwayGeorge WashingtonWashington, D.C
November 2, 2024 (Saturday)1 pm CTAwayGeorge WashingtonWashington, D.C
November 8, 2024 (Friday)6 pmHomeGeorge MasonSt. Louis, Mo. / Chaifetz Pavilion
November 9, 2024 (Saturday)6 pmHomeGeorge MasonSt. Louis, Mo. / Chaifetz Pavilion
November 15, 2024 (Friday)6 pmHomeDaytonSt. Louis, Mo. / Chaifetz Pavilion
November 16, 2024 (Saturday)2 pmHomeDaytonSt. Louis, Mo. / Chaifetz Pavilion
November 22, 2024 (Friday)TBANeutralA-10 ChampionshipDayton, OhioAtlantic 10 Championship