GRAND FORKS, N.D. – North Dakota volleyball head coach Jesse Tupac has announced the hiring of Jimmy Stika as the program’s newest Director of Operations. The official announcement was made on January 28. Stika comes to North Dakota from NCAA Division III Fontbonne and fills the vacancy left by Matt Breitbarth who was elevated to an assistant coach position within the program.

Stika, a native of St. Louis, Missouri, most recently served as head women’s volleyball coach at Fontbonne from 2022 to 2024. Additionally, he served as Fontbonne’s head men’s volleyball coach from 2020 to 2023 and as an assistant for the team from 2017 to 2019. He also spent the 2019 season as a volunteer assistant for Division I Saint Louis’ women’s program.

“We are very excited to welcome Jimmy to Grand Forks,” noted Tupac.  “As a former head coach at the Division 3 level, Jimmy brings a unique skillset and perspective that will be invaluable as we continue to build up our UND volleyball program. He has had tremendous success coaching on both the Men’s and Women’s sides of our sport and will be able to lend valuable insight from those experiences.  More importantly, he is a phenomenal human being and will be a wonderful mentor for our volleyball student-athletes.  The Fighting Hawks just got better.”

Stika led the Fontbonne women for three seasons accumulating 56 victories (.651) which included a 23-win campaign in 2023. He led the program to its first conference tournament championship and NCAA Tournament appearance since 2005 in his first season of 2022.

While directing the Griffins’ men’s program, Stika led Fontbonne to 53 wins (.716), including the program’s first-ever regular season conference title in 2021 and a 20-win season, behind the program’s first unbeaten conference slate, in 2022. He recruited the program’s first-ever AVCA All-American in Ryan Lively in addition to spearheading the development of multiple MCVL All-Conference performers, a two-time MCVL Defensive Player of the Year, two MCVL Tournament Most Valuable Players and an MCVL Newcomer of the Year. Stika was named the 2022 Co-Conference Coach of the Year and was a Class of 2022 AVCA 30 Under 30 Award recipient.

In all, Stika totaled 99 wins over six seasons with two 20-win campaigns.

His first collegiate coaching opportunity came at his alma mater where for two seasons he assisted the Fontbonne men’s volleyball team. Stika was key in helping guide the Griffins to the program’s first conference title, first NCAA tournament berth, first NCAA tournament win and a program record 26 wins in 2019. That historic season saw Fontbonne lead NCAA Division III in digs per set (13.00) and rank in the top five nationally in blocks per set (2.34) and opponent hitting percentage (.115).

In between his time at Fontbonne, Stika served as a volunteer assistant coach of the Saint Louis women’s volleyball team aiding the Billikens to an A-10 Tournament semifinal appearance in 2019.

In addition to his collegiate coaching experience, Stika spent a number of years coaching at the club and high school levels in the St. Louis area, including stints with High Performance STL and Missouri Thunder Volleyball Club, while also having been an assistant coach for the 2016 Affton High School boys volleyball team that captured the Class 3A state title.

As a player, Stika was a four-year starter at libero and a three-time captain on Fontbonne’s men’s volleyball team. A CVC West All-Conference selection, Stika remains inside the top five on the Griffins’ career digs list (810). In addition to his on-court success, Stika was a multiple-time recipient of CVC/MCVL All-Academic Team honors.  

Stika graduated Fontbonne with a bachelor’s degree in psychology in 2016 and received a master’s in supply chain management in 2019.