Coach Julio

Coach Julio Cruz was born and raised in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico, and brings more than 35 years of cross-continental coaching experience to Sarasota Volleyball Club. He currently serves as the Varsity Head Coach at Sarasota Christian School and joins SVC in 2026 as a Travel Coach, AAU Coach, and leader in our Coaches' Development program.

Julio's coaching résumé spans high school, college, and club volleyball across multiple states. He was an NCAA Division I Assistant Coach at New Mexico State University and Head Coach at Out-of-Door Academy. At Venice High School, he spent 13 years as a JV, freshman, and varsity assistant coach, helping the program win three Florida State Championships. He also led Cardinal Mooney's JV program from 2017 to 2018.

In the club world, Julio has served as head coach at Suncoast VBC, Venetian Bay VBC (13 years), Wave/OTVA, and Elite Sports VBC. His teams have earned bids to USAV Nationals twice and captured regional championships in Texas.

Julio is also the Founder and Owner of Sand Dollar Beach VBC, a premier beach volleyball program in the Sarasota area. For 19 years, he has served as Head Coach for ages 10U through 16U.

As a player, Julio was selected for the official US Army Volleyball Team and competed for two years in the armed forces tournament. His international playing career spans more than 10 years at the collegiate level for Universidad Interamericana in Puerto Rico and Pitirres VBC (now AVG), along with various local, military, and civilian clubs across Texas, Georgia, Panama, Saudi Arabia, and Korea.

He holds lifetime BCAP and IMPACT certifications through USA Volleyball and is a Bronze level coach at the USAV Academy. He is an active member of USAV, AAU, JVA, AVCA, the Positive Coaching Alliance (PCA), AOC, Coach's Insider, and GMS+.

In his own words: "My goal is to develop complete athletes — players who compete with confidence, communicate with purpose, lead by example, and understand that hard work, accountability, and character matter just as much as wins and championships."

Off the court, Coach Julio is a disabled veteran of the Gulf War who served from 1990 to 2000. He is married to Brenda Cruz and has three children. A self-taught amateur astronomer, tech enthusiast, and Star Wars fan, he also enjoys the beach, baking, and running his online selling business.