LOS ANGELES, CA – February 3, 2025 – League One Volleyball (LOVB) is committed to empowering women both on and off the court. LOVB furthered that commitment Monday by appointing three powerhouse female executives to its leadership body:
- Seasoned finance and sports executive Stephanie Alger is joining the organization as Chief Growth Officer, in a search conducted by Nolan Partners.
- Christina Donelson, LOVB’s Head of People Success is being promoted to Chief Administrative Officer.
- Stephanie Martin, LOVB’s SVP of Marketing and Communications is also being elevated to Chief Marketing and Communications Officer.
With their appointments, LOVB’s leadership body will now become 54% female, demonstrating the league’s commitment to empowering women both on-and-off the court.
“These three incredibly dynamic executives embody all the functional expertise, bold creativity, strategic mindset and operational discipline to successfully shape the future of LOVB and our beloved sport,” said Katlyn Gao, co-founder and CEO of LOVB.
With nearly 20 years of success transforming and growing multi-billion-dollar global businesses, Alger brings a unique blend of experience in banking, private equity, operations, data, risk, and sports to her position as LOVB’s new Chief Growth Officer. Alger built her career leading high-impact teams at top-tier financial institutions like Bank of America, where she was a Managing Director and Global Head of Equity Derivatives, Prime Brokerage, and Swaps Platforms, leading a global team responsible for a platform generating $4.5 billion in annual revenue, as well as Vista Equity Partners, where she served as Head of Strategy, Risk, and Analytics for Vista Credit Partners, the firm’s credit arm, driving product innovation, portfolio optimization, and model development for a $6.5 billion portfolio. In addition, Alger advises and serves on the boards of several organizations, including the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee’s Performance Innovation Advisory Committee.
Demonstrating a proven track record for developing innovative strategies that fuel growth and positive change, Alger joins LOVB at a time when the league is set to experience even more growth after an impressive 2024. In the past year alone, LOVB raised $100 million from marquee investors, doubled the size of its youth programs - expanding to 58 clubs with more than 17,000 athletes across 26 states and 66 locations. LOVB also launched its Pro league, which debuted its first matches on January 8, 2025 in Atlanta to an over-subscribed crowd. Featuring teams in Atlanta, Austin, Houston, Madison, Omaha and Salt Lake and made up of some of the best professional players in the world – with 17 Olympians including ten members of Team USA who earned a silver medal at the Paris 2024 Games, and players from more than 20 countries, with 90% having represented their national teams – the league’s first six teams are already capturing the attention of a vibrant volleyball community as they bring an unprecedented level of play to the U.S., led by world-class coaches who boast a collective18 Olympic medals. As LOVB’s Chief Growth Officer, Alger will manage and execute all corporate business development activities, as well as play a key role in curating, delivering, and inspiring the long-term growth strategy for LOVB both at the club and professional level.
A highly respected executive leader, Christina Donelson is known for her ability to build high-performing teams, foster inclusive cultures, and drive organizational growth. Her career spans leadership roles at globally recognized brands, including Caesars Entertainment, Marriott Hotels & Resorts, and Delta Airlines, as well as regional and high-growth startups. Most notably, during her tenure as Senior Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer at Pinnacle Entertainment, Christina played an integral role in scaling the company fourfold. During this transformative period, her team led efforts to build a thriving culture, advance talent reinvestment, and implement innovative compensation programs to align leadership performance and long-term shareholder value.
In addition to her executive experience, Christina has excelled as a trusted advisor to boards and leadership teams, particularly in navigating mergers, acquisitions, and organizational transitions. She has worked closely with Nominating and Governance, Compensation, and Board Chairs to enhance governance practices, develop processes for improved board effectiveness, and align executive performance with strategic goals.
As LOVB’s Chief Administrative Officer, Christina will oversee People Success, focusing on attracting, developing, and retaining top talent while fostering cross-functional alignment to support the league’s rapid expansion. She will also guide efforts to advance the company’s technology strategy and infrastructure and ensure operational readiness and scalability as LOVB continues to redefine the sports industry.
Christina is an Associate Certified Coach (ACC) with the International Coaching Federation. She holds certifications in behavioral assessment tools such as Hogan, Korn Ferry Leadership Architect, and DiSC. Her deep expertise in coaching and leadership development equips her to navigate complex transitions and position organizations for long-term success.
An award-winning marketing and communications executive, Martin brings more than 25 years of executive and C-suite experience in communications, brand, marketing and event production at Fortune 500 companies like Meta (formerly Facebook), The Home Depot and Albertsons, and global sporting events such as the Super Bowl, America’s Cup and Rugby World Cup Sevens to her position as LOVB’s Chief Marketing and Communications Officer. A well-regarded expert in translating company vision and mission into stakeholder action on a global scale, Stephanie has been the architect of innovative strategies, partnerships and narratives across sports, retail and entertainment organizations and global properties, and has significant experience in building, scaling and leading communications, marketing and organizational culture.
Prior to joining LOVB, Stephanie was most recently senior vice president, head of communications at Dapper Labs, the Web3 company behind some of the most successful NFT experiences including NBA Top Shot and NFL Day. She was also one of the early leaders in the athlete brand strategy space through the consultancy she co-founded, BFWD, which worked with professional and Olympic athletes to tap into the power of their platforms and realize the impact they can have off the field of play.
Stephanie is also a certified independent corporate director; an adjunct professor in brand and communications for the University of San Francisco's Sports Management Masters program; a certified Myers-Briggs Type Indicator practitioner; and the co-author of the book Big Game, Bigger Impact: How the Bay Area Redefined the Super Bowl and the Lessons Learned that Can Apply to Any Business, which chronicles the hosting of Super Bowl 50 and how major sporting events can be catalysts for good.
As LOVB’s Chief Marketing and Communications Officer, Martin will continue her work in building and elevating the profile of LOVB, its clubs, its teams and its athletes as she oversees marketing, communications, content, social media, creative, events and community relations across LOVB.
For more information about LOVB’s launch, please visit www.LOVB.com.
About LOVB
Founded in 2020, LOVB’s mission is to reimagine the future of volleyball. With a unique community up approach, LOVB is one holistic ecosystem - from club to pro. The largest community of youth clubs in the country, LOVB is launching its first serve in January, featuring some of the very best players in the world including the American silver medalists from this year’s Olympics. For more information on LOVB, its clubs, and its professional teams in Atlanta, Austin, Houston, Madison, Omaha, and Salt Lake, please visit www.lovb.com, or follow on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
