UNLV REBELS

Yvonne Scott-Williams

Position: Head Coach Experience: 2nd Year

One of the top up-and-coming coaches in the region, Yvonne Scott-Williams was hired as the fourth head coach in UNLV track and field history on July 20, 2007.

Given the task of turning around the Rebel program, Scott-Williams is in her first head coaching position after spending five years as an assistant at Long Beach State and Sacramento State.

"I am very excited about the opportunity to lead a team that has the potential of being a strong force in the Mountain West Conference," Scott-Williams said when she was hired. "I intend to work hard to bring Rebel track and field back to what it is capable of."

In her first season at the helm, Scott-Williams helped mentor a 4x100 relay team that qualified for the NCAA Outdoor Championships, giving the Rebels a representative at the national meet for the first time since 2006.

Scott-Williams oversaw the sprinters and hurdlers coach at Long Beach State and turned in unparalleled success at the school. While at Long Beach State she mentored student-athletes who earned All-Big West honors 29 times and broke 10 school records.

"Yvonne Scott-Williams met all of our criteria for a new head coach," Athletics Director Mike Hamrick said when announcing the hire. "A national search was conducted and I am confident that Scott-Williams is the coach that can once again have the UNLV track and field program become a strong competitor on the conference and national levels."

Scott-Williams started her coaching career at Sacramento State as an assistant from 1999-2001, supervising the Hornets' sprinters and hurdlers. The two-time Olympian entered coaching following a stellar career on the track.

Scott-Williams was a member of the Japanese National Program from 1996-2004, qualifying for the 1996 Summer Games in Atlanta and then the 2000 Sydney Olympics in the 100-meter hurdles, where she reached the semifinals. She was an eight-time Japanese National Champion, winning the 100-meter hurdles six consecutive years from 1995-2000, and then again in 2002 and 2003. She is the Japanese national record holder in both the 60- and 100-meter hurdles.

As a student-athlete at the University of Colorado, she earned All-America honors in 1996 and was a three-time Big Eight Champion in the 100-meter hurdles. In 1996 she set the school record in the 100-meter hurdles (12.98) and recorded the second-fastest time in the 100 meters (11.68) on her way to becoming an All-American.

Scott-Williams earned her bachelor's degree in sociology with a minor in ethnic studies from Colorado in 1996. She is married to Robert Williams and the couple has a son, Jordan.