Our Facility
Idaho Beach Volleyball is excited to call the Boise State Beach Courts home for 2022 and beyond! The three courts are located on the corner of Oakland and Belmont on the SW corner of campus, and boast the nicest sand and nets that Idaho has to offer.
Our Team
Alex Venardos
Alex is a native of Manhattan Beach, California - considered the "mecca" of beach volleyball. Upon moving to Boise in 2016, Alex began serving as a volunteer coach for both the Boise State Women's Volleyball and Beach Volleyball teams, and stayed as a volunteer for both programs for three seasons. After graduating in 2018, Alex was hired on as a full time assistant coach for the Broncos’ Beach Volleyball Team. Since then, Alex has helped guide Boise State’s Beach team to their two most successful season in program history, finishing the 2022 season with a 20-9 record and 2023 season with 25-10 while also finishing as the Southland Conference runner up.
Alex started Idaho Beach in 2021 alongside AVP pro Jason Lee, who has since moved to Florida. He is taking over at the helm going into the 2023 year, and brings a deep passion to grow the beach volleyball community in the Treasure Valley at all levels, from juniors to adults. Alex has coached both the 14U and 18U boys teams with Idaho Strike, where he also served as club director from 2016-2017. He continues to travel and play men's beach tournaments, having competed in beach tournaments in over 10 states.
Joey Benson
Joey is from Buckeye, Arizona where she played for RPM Sand Volleyball club. She competed on the USA Volleyball Arizona High Performance Beach Volleyball Team in 2015 and 2016. Benson was also a pioneer for the Verrado High School beach volleyball program.
She went on to play one year of beach volleyball at the University of New Mexico before the program was discontinued. Benson then transferred to Boise State University to finish out her career from 2019-2023, where she served as a team captain from 2020-2023. In her last season she earned first-team all-conference, the record for most individual wins in a season (23) and the mark for most matches played as a Bronco (92). She also earned: CSC Academic All-District Team 2023, Southland Conference All-Academic Team 2023, Southland Commissioner's Honor Roll 2023, Broncos in the Community Award 2023, 1A FAR Academic Excellence Award 2023 in her last year. She graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology in 2023 and is working towards her master’s degree in Kinesiology. In her free time, she enjoys hiking, backpacking and any other outdoor activities.
Rorianna Chartier
Rorianna Chartier is from Edmond, Oklahoma where she played for her dad’s beach volleyball club OP2 Beach. During her time at OP2, she qualified for qualified for USAV and AVP championships in 2017, 2018, and 2019. Rori was a varsity libero for her high school team when we won state championships in 2017, and 2018. She earned Oklahoma 6A all state and first-team all-conference in 2018, 2019 while also placing 5th at USAV indoor nationals in 2018. Chartier still holds Edmond Santa Fe High School defensive records for passing percentage and most digs.
Rori has gone on to coach for OP2 beach 3 summers in a row and coached for Idaho Beach during summer 2023. She also was an assistant coach for Idaho One 15 Blue this past season. She graduated in May of 2024 with a bachelors degree in Cellular and Molecular Biology while competing on the Boise State Beach Volleyball team. She plans to pursue a masters in Medical Laboratory Technology from Idaho State University. She holds the top position for all time career wins at 74. Chartier was voted Most Valuable Player for the 2023 season and was named second-team all conference for the 2024 season. In her free time she loves to hang out with her friends and read.
Emily Garus
Emily Garus is from Boise, Idaho where she played club indoor volleyball for Boise Volleyball Club and Idaho Crush. Emily played four years of varsity volleyball at Capital High School where she received MVP awards in 2017 and 2019 and offensive player of the year awards in 2018 and 2019. She left the school holding the most aces in a season record, most kills in a season recorded, and was entered into the Hall of Fame.
Emily spent the fall of 2020 at Lewis-Clark State College as a member of the indoor volleyball team before transferring to Boise State in the summer of 2021. At Boise State, Emily has been a member of the Boise State Beach Volleyball team for the last three years. She will be graduating next winter with degree in Elementary Education and a middle school mathematics endorsement, and is currently student teaching. In her free time she enjoys spending time with friends and family.
Allison Voigt
Allison Voigt is the head beach volleyball coach for Boise State. In spring 2022 she led the team to finish 20-9 while spring 2023 they quickly set a new record of 25-10. The Broncos also finished as the Southland Conference runner up during their first year in the conference. Voigt is a native of Camas, Washington but has been a resident of Boise for 7 years.
Voigt was a standout libero on the Lobo volleyball team from 2008-2011. During her last two seasons as a collegiate athlete she earned AVCA All-America Honorable-Mention and first-team AVCA All-West Region honors, as well as being a two-time All-MW honoree as the MW Libero of the Year. She also served as a team captain her senior year and excelled in the classroom where she was a four-time Academic All-MW award recipient. She graduated in May 2012 from the University of New Mexico with a bachelor’s degree in elementary education. In her free time she enjoys spending time with family and friends and watching the new hit show.
Elli Wolthuis
Elli is originally from Gilbert, Arizona where she competed for One Beach volleyball club. She graduated from Gilbert Christian high school and was first team all conference her senior year.
Elli is currently an upcoming junior blocker for the Boise State Beach Volleyball team. She has received first team all conference two years in a row for the 4s and 5s pairs, and the Southland conference all academic team. Elli recently broke the school record for most wins as a pair in program history with 29 wins in a season, and most wins as a 5s pair with 21 wins. Elli has a love for health and wellness and is majoring in kinesiology with hopes of attending physical therapy school post-graduation.
Jayelin Lombard
Jayelin is originally from Phoenix, Arizona where she began her beach volleyball career. She was a member of the U19 Girls Junior Beach Championships in 2017 and a finalist at the 2016 FIBA World Championship trials.
Lombard went on to play collegiately for five years at Cal Poly. She led the Mustangs to three-straight Big West, resulting in three NCAA National Championship appearances. She accumulated 92 wins during her career as a Mustang, which is the third-most in program history. She was also a four-time All-Big West honoree, three of which included first-team accolades. She collected over 20 wins over ranked opponents over the course of her career. She also coached alongside neighboring clubs in California during those 5 years. Lombard graduated in the spring of 2023 with a degree in psychology. Jayelin joined the Boise State beach volleyball staff for the 2023-24 season.
Maya Watkins
Maya is originally from Snohomish, Washington where she played for Island Thunder Beach Volleyball club. During her high school career, she placed 5th at the USA Nationals in 2016.
Watkins went on to play beach volleyball for Boise State in 2017-2021. She served as a team captain during her last season and also was a two time Broncos in the Community awardee. Maya graduated in 2021 with a degree in Health Science and Nursing. She is currently working as a Pediatric Registered Nurse.
Boise State Beach Volleyball Courts, located at 1104 S Oakland Ave.