Former M-A coach Bryant Tran takes over Sequoia volleyball program

Much to Tran’s surprise, College of Marin offered him the job Monday. After two days of consternation, he declined Marin’s offer to take over the program at the Kentfield campus.

“I actually turned it down because I gave these (Sequoia) kids my word,” Tran said. “I was like: ‘I’m not going to do that to them at the last minute.’”

Tran has his work cut out for him. Entering his 20th season as a volleyball coach, he expects approximately 60 students to attend Sequoia’s tryouts, when they open Friday, Aug. 9. Tran previously ran the program at Menlo-Atherton for two years from 2021-22, where there were approximately 100 students to fill three rosters at the varsity, junior-varsity and freshman levels. He said he is committed to fielding three teams at Sequoia as well.

In his two years at M-A, Tran led the Bears to the Central Coast Section Division I finals in both seasons, including the team’s fourth all-time CCS championship in ’21. He takes over at Sequoia for an M-A alumna, Katie Wilcox, who headed the Ravens from 2022-23.

“It’s definitely a change, but from the kids I’ve seen over the summer, we do have some talent,” Tran said. “And we’ll be able to build a strong roster that can compete. I don’t know if we have the depth. But we’ll be able to have a good lineup.”

Matching any kind of the success Tran had at M-A would be a big step up for the Ravens, who have won just three CCS playoff matches in team history, one in each 1981, 2012 and ’14. The program has never advanced past the second round of the postseason.

“I’m really excited,” Sequoia athletic director Melissa Schmidt said. “I think that Katie is someone who put her heart and soul into the program and I think Bryant is going to completely match that. ... And I also think he brings some pretty incredible experience, and experience competing at that next level where we would like to get.”

Taking on a salaried position at Marin College, while also coaching at Sequoia, wasn’t out of the realm of possibility for Tran. During his two years at M-A, he also served as an assistant coach for the Menlo College women’s program, a position he held from 2019-23 until head coach Denise Sheldon left the team to take a promotion as Menlo College executive director of operations.

Ultimately, starting two new jobs at once wasn’t in the cards for Tran.

“I was actually considering doing both,” Tran said. “I looked at the schedule and was like: ‘I might be able to pull this off.’ But then there was a few things I would have to miss. … Being the first year at Sequoia, I owed it to the kids to give it my hundred percent. … Definitely for the first year, you’ve got to be a hundred percent. So, I turned it down.”

Tran is a native of Hayward who attended James Logan High School-Union City, and graduated from Cal State East Bay in 2010.

Two of the coaches from Tran’s staff at M-A will make the move to Sequoia. Natalie Harden, who coached M-A’s freshman team, will serve as Sequoia’s junior-varsity head coach. Ryan Ting also makes the move, taking over as Sequoia’s strength and conditioning coach. Sequoia will retain Rebecca Goodwin as head coach of the freshman team.

“I think having my staff with me again … people that I trust, people that believe in, the same philosophy,” Tran said. “At Sequoia, we’re trying to build a new culture. The same culture we’ve built everywhere we’ve gone. … Positive success.”

Despite a down year in 2023 — the Ravens finished 9-20 overall, including a 3-11 record in Peninsula Athletic League Bay Division play, placing seventh in the eight-team league — Sequoia maintains its standing in the “A” league Bay Division. As fate would have it, Sequoia opens PAL Bay play Sept. 12 against M-A.

“Maybe the universe is saying something,” Tran said.