Coaching Staff (2024-2025)
Chris Martinez
Head Coach Chris Martinez enters his sixth year with the Volleyball program where he has served as the head coach for the JV team (2019-2020), and now currently serves as the head coach for the Varsity team. His combined record from coaching both programs is 62-26 and has won three consecutive Tri-County Athletic League (TCAL) Championships.
In 2021, during his first full season as the Varsity head coach, Martinez led the Panthers to a 19-win season, and qualified for the NCS Division 4 Playoffs. In the following year of 2022, Martinez and the Varsity squad had quite the encore as the team won more than 20 games, finished undefeated in TCAL play to win back-to-back league titles, and qualified for both NCS and the NorCal Playoffs.
During this past season of 2023, Martinez led his group to an overall record of 21-12 and to a third straight TCAL title finishing with a league record of 9-1. Martinez also led the team to an NCS Quarterfinal appearance as well.
Along with coaching the Panthers, Coach Martinez has also been involved in the club circuit for 8 years, serving as a Coach and Co-Director for the Infinite Training Volleyball Club.
Martinez, a Bay Area native who grew up in Richmond, CA, was a talented a soccer player playing for various high schools such as Pinole Valley, Richmond, and Fairfax High in Southern California where he played at the Varsity level all four years of high school. Following high school, Martinez would play one year at Contra Costa College in San Pablo, CA, before stepping away from the game.
Martinez is married to his wife, Rebecca, and has two daughters, Sophia and Gabriella, and a dog named Patches. Sophia is a recent graduate of Saint Mary’s High School (c/o 2023) who also starred in the volleyball program, and Gabriella is currently a Junior at Saint Mary’s.
Jose Vargas
Coach Jose Vargas has been the Saint Mary's head coach for both the Frosh/Soph and JV Volleyball programs for four years. He also serves as the head coach for the Varsity Boys Volleyball program as well. He began his coaching career at the Catholic Youth Organization (CYO) level. After being an assistant for a couple of years, Vargas became a head coach in the CYO level where he worked hard to develop the girls he coached in order to get them ready for the high school level.
In his first season as the head coach for the Varsity Boys Volleyball program, he led his team to an overall record of 20-9 and a Tri-County Athletic League (TCAL) title. He also led the team to their first North Coast Section (NCS) playoff victory in the First Round of the 2024 NCS Playoffs.
At the CYO level, Vargas won multiple championship titles before transitioning to the high school level, serving as the head coach for the Junior Varsity program and then, ultimately, the Varsity program. Despite the volleyball season being cut short by the COVID-19 pandemic, Vargas' team did the best we could they had lots of fun. Vargas says he loves coaching and helping kids develop their skills to move up to the next levels, whether it’s High School, Club or CYO.
Jose Vargas Coaching Career:
2 years CYO Assistant Coach, 2 years CYO Head Coach, 7 years Club Coach, 1 year High School JV Coach, 1 year High School Varsity Coach
Career Highlights:
- Jim Negri Tournament Consolation 2nd Place (2017)
- Jim Negri Tournament 2nd Place Finish (2018),
- Reno Far Westerns Silver Bracket Winner (2017)
- NCVA Eagle Division Premier Points Title (2018)
- JV Team record 20-9 (2019)
In addition to coaching volleyball, Vargas has also coached Soccer, Track, T-Ball and Coach Pitch.