Bio

Volleyball Head Coach Lorayne Chandler has compiled a 181-89 record in her 11 seasons leading the Lady Matadors. Chandler has led Arizona Western to four Region I championships and a national tournament appearance. Coach Chandler was named the Region I DI Volleyball Coach of the Year after leading the Matadors to a regular season conference title and the Region I finals IN 2024. She is the all-time winningest coach in AWC volleyball program history. Before the 2025 season, the Lady Matadors had seven consecutive seasons in which they reached the Region I finals. Under Coach Chandler the Lady Matadors have three 20-win seasons. The Lady Matadors have produced four NJCAA DI All-Americans under Chandler's leadership. As a team during the 2025 fall semester, The Lady Matadors Volleyball team finish with a 3.49 team GPA.

For seven consecutive seasons, Chandler has led the Matadors Volleyball program to the Region I finals and has produced three 20-win seasons during her 10-year tenure. That continued level of success garnered Chandler a spot on the American Volleyball Coaches Association Top 30 Under 30 coaches in 2017. She has coached an NJCAA First Team All-American and the ACCAC Player of the Year in Mafe Sandoval in 2016, ACCAC Libero of the Year Neylishian Roman Concepcion in 2018, the ACCAC Co-Player of the Year Anny Montano in 2021 and the Region I Libero of the Year Rana Yamada in 2024. Chandler also established a standard for helping players continue their collegiate careers after AWC by helping an impressive seven players sign with four-year schools in 2016. In 2018-19, that number jumped to all eight sophomores moving on to four-year schools to play volleyball.

Chandler became just the second coach in program history to lead the Matadors to the national tournament in 2016, steering the Matadors to a 26-4 record. In the last four seasons, the Matadors have appeared in the District Championship game on three occasions. 

Chandler grew up in Tuleta, Texas, and graduated from Pettus High School in 2005 before attending Richland College in Dallas, Texas, where she played volleyball for two years. Coach Chandler transferred to Texas A&M, where she graduated in 2009. In 2010, Coach Chandler attended Texas Christian University and gained experience as an administrative assistant for the TCU Volleyball team. Chandler is NFHS Certified and USA Volleyball Impact Certified.