Swap of legends: Latin loses volleyball coach Suzie Pignetti, hires AKell's Zoe Bell

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Charlotte Latin’s volleyball program swapped two legendary coaches Thursday.

Suzie Pignetti announced she is retiring July 1, and the school announced it was hiring former Ardrey Kell coach Zoe Bell.

Pignetti will resign her position as assistant athletics director and coach after leading Charlotte Latin to nine straight state championships.

Pignetti has coached at Latin since 2001. The team won 11 straight conference championships.

Pignetti coached for 35 years at Latin, Butler and Charlotte Country Day, amassing a 745-120 record. Her teams won 29 conference championships and 15 state titles.

Pignetti coache 18 high school players and 35 club players who played in college and was named the American Volleyball Coaches Association national coach of the year in 2012.

A breast cancer survivor, Pignetti helped start an annual tournament called “Serve For The Cure” that has raised more than $300,000 for breast cancer research in 11 years.

Bell, who replaces Pignetti, led Ardrey Kell to a state championship last year. She has more than 30 years of coaching experience in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools and led powerhouse programs at Ardrey Kell and Providence to 13 Southwestern 4A conference titles and five N.C. 4A state championships.

“Zoe is widely recognized and respected as a winning volleyball coach in North Carolina and surrounding states,” Pignetti said in a written statement. “In addition to being one of the best volleyball coaches in the area, Zoe is also an experienced school administrator. Her professionalism is a well-balanced blend of competence, experience and cordiality. She will fit in very comfortably with the professional educators at Charlotte Latin.”