The 2023-24 season will be the first year Deo is on staff for Dominican University.
Boongaling has coached at various clubs and colleges in Northern California, starting his coaching career at his alma mater, California State University of East Bay. While there, he served as an undergraduate assistant for the Pioneers during the 2019-2020 season. At East Bay, he primarily worked with the pin hitters and liberos. Through CSUEB, he met former East Bay player Leslie Ray (current Red Rock Director) where they began their friendship and professional relationship, coaching together. From 2020 to 2023, he served as either an assistant or head coach on coaching staffs for 13s, 14s, 15s, 17s and 18s at Xcelleration Volleyball Club, in Martinez Calif. He also served as an assistant director for fall and summer camps that the club provided during his tenure.
In the summer of 2022, Boongaling forged relationships with University of California Berkeley and St Mary's College of Moraga, as a summer camp coach working alongside the coaching staffs of each respective program and creating networks and relationships in the NCAA which led to his next opportunity.
For the 2022 NCAA season, he joined the staff of the University of San Francisco, a Division I program competing in the West Coast Conference. In 2021, the Dons went 0-28, and in his first year on staff in 2022, the Dons had a turnaround season finishing 14-15. They started the season off red hot, with a seven-game winning streak, winning back-to-back preseason tournaments at Montana State and Fresno State. From October to November, USF was able to complete a six-game winning streak with notable wins against Loyola Marymount University and a reverse sweep comeback against the No. 36 ranked team in the nation at the time, Pepperdine University. While there, he primarily worked with middles and liberos, tracking stats in practices and games and collaborating on opponent's scouting reports alongside the other assistants. Under the complete staff's guidance, two players were acknowledged for their personal success during the season and were named to the All-West Coast Conference Second team (Claire Crijns) and honorable mention (Abby Wadas).
Aside from coaching women's volleyball in club and college, he has also yielded success on the men's side as an assistant coach for the Moreau Catholic men's high school volleyball program in Hayward, Calif. While an assistant coach, he helped the program go 23-1 in the MVAL league and finish second place in the North Coast Section Division 3 championships in back-to-back years.
Prior to his coaching career, Boongaling played varsity volleyball at St. Patricks - St. Vincents high school in Vallejo, Calif. for three years (2012-2015), where he won one NCS division 4 championship and 3 TCAL league championships. He also was named 2nd team all league his junior year and during his senior year he was named team captain, 1st team all league, Team MVP and TCAL league MVP. During high school, he also played for Diablo Valley Volleyball club from 2013-2015. After his high school career, he was recruited as an outside hitter to San Diego City College where he played for the 2015-2016 season as an outside hitter and libero.
Born on January 10, 1997, Boongaling is the second child of three to his parents Rommel and Day Boongaling. A native to the bay area, he grew up in Vallejo, Calif. attending St. Patricks- St. Vincents high school and graduated in 2015. After playing and attending San Diego City College (2015-2016) and Diablo Valley College (2016-2018), he transferred to and graduated from California State University of East Bay in 2021 with a bachelor's in science for Kinesiology. He hopes to one day become a NCAA head coach himself and open up a club of his own after his coaching career is done.
Boongaling's favorite thing about coaching volleyball is the ability to empower young athletes and help them explore and grow their passion for a sport that he loves himself. He understands the life lessons that volleyball teaches are far more worth than just the physical and athletic skills he's able to teach. Knowing he can leave a positive impact on a young athlete's life, just as his own coaches had left on his, he tries to remind all of athletes he comes across to always have fun, continue to be curious and open to learning and to make the most of every opportunity this sport presents them.
