About me
Courtney DeBolt Slinko was an All-State and All-American volleyball player at Stevenson High School. She continued her volleyball career at Michigan State University, where she was a 4-year letter winner (1992-1995). In 1995, she received All-Big Ten and All American honors, as MSU advanced to the NCAA Final Four. A setter, she ranked 2nd in Spartans’ history with 3,773 assists and 176 service aces. In her senior year, she registered the school’s 2nd highest single season assist total with 1,450. She served as Team Captain in 1994 and 1995 and received the Chester L. Brewer Leadership Award, given to 1 MSU athlete/year. Also, she was the Vice President of the Varsity “S” Club, comprised of MSU varsity letter winners, coached at Haslett High School and had her own segment of a local TV show called “Courtside with Courtney”.
Following her collegiate career, Courtney played professionally in the Netherlands in 1997. In 1998, she trained with the U.S National Volleyball Team in Colorado Springs, but an injury prevented her from playing in the 2000 Olympics. From there, she went on to be an Assistant Volleyball Coach at Marquette University (1999-2001), and then returned to the Chicago area in 2002 to play for the Chicago Thunder Team in the U.S. Professional Volleyball League, where she earned the Community Service Award and became the league’s spokesperson. Later that year, Courtney was the Color Commentator of the 2002 IHSA State Volleyball Tournament.
In May 2003, she played in the USA Adult Open Indoor Championships where her team became National Champions.
From 2003-2006, Courtney coached the Boys and Girls Volleyball Teams at Buffalo Grove H.S., where in 2006, the Boys’ Team finished 4th in the IHSA State Finals. From 2006-2009, she was the Girls’ Varsity Assistant Coach at Cary-Grove H.S., as the squad won the IHSA State Championship in 2009. In 2013, Courtney was inducted into the Lake County High Schools Sports Hall of Fame. She spent 2 years as a Head Coach at Michio Chicago Volleyball Academy from 2015-2017 where her 16 National Team finished 9th in the 16 Open Division of AAU Nationals before she accepted her position here at VC United.
Courtney resides in Woodstock with her husband, Rich and their 2 children, Jade and Derek.
