Volleyball

KARA SEIDENSTRICKER

MEGHAN VODOPICH

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2014-2015

2014 Quick Facts

EMILY KAHLIG

MELISSA EMMING

CREDITS: Photography by university photographer Erin Pence ‘04 and Dave Kniffin.

Find the Tigers on Facebookwww.facebook.com/wittenbergathletics

GeneralSchool Name ........................................Wittenberg UniversityLocation ............................................ Springfield, Ohio 45501Founded .........................................................................1845Enrollment .....................................................................1,900Nickname......................................................................TigersHome Facility .........Pam Evans Smith Arena (HPER Center)Capacity.........................................................................3,000National Affiliation ..................................... NCAA Division IIIConference ......................... North Coast Athletic ConferencePresident ............................................... Laurie Joyner, Ph.D.Alma Mater ................Loyola University New Orleans, 1986

Athletics Director.......................................Dr. Gary WilliamsAlma Mater ..................................................Carthage, 1996

Athletics Phone ............................................ (937) 327-6458

Coaching StaffHead Coach .................................................... Paco LabradorAlma Mater ....................................................... Hiram, 1995

E-mail .......................................... flabrador@wittenberg.eduRecord at Wittenberg ........................348-55 (2003-present)Career Record .............................................................. SameAssistant Coach .......................................... Hallie Donathan Alma Mater ............................................... Wittenberg, 2013

Volleyball Office ............................................ (937) 327-6492Athletic Trainer ................................................ Ellen CrosbieAssistant Athletic Trainer .............................. Molly HopkinsAssistant Athletic Trainer ............................Greg Schneider

Volleyball HistoryFirst Year ............................................Records begin in 1979All-Time Record ............................................. 835-382 (.686)NCAC Regular Season Championships ..........................19NCAC Tournament Championships .................................19 NCAA Tournament Appearances .....................................19Last NCAA Tournament Appearance ...........................2013Result .................................W, 3-0 vs. Bluffton (First Round) ..................................... W, 3-1 vs. Chicago (Second Round) .............................L, 2-3 at Calvin (Regional Championship)

Team Information2013 Overall Record .......................................................25-92013 NCAC Record (Finish) ................................... 8-0 (1st)Letterwinners Returning ...................................................15

Courtney Huck, Laura DeWitt, Melissa Emming, Kiah Murray, Maria Froendhoff, Brooke Barney, Bryanna Jay, Kristina Fultz, Kara Seidenstricker, Haley Mucha, Emily Kahlig, Callan Swaim, Camila Quiñones, Meghan Vodopich, Jenny Lehman

Letterwinners Lost ..............................................................4Katie Zito, Andrea Behling, Libbi Guiliano, Lexi Wredberg

Starters Returning ....................................................4+liberoMelissa Emming, Kiah Murray, Kara Seidenstricker, Emily Kahlig,Meghan Vodopich

Starters Lost ........................................................................2Katie Zito, Andrea Behling

2014-2015 VOLLEYBALL

Wittenberg head coach Paco Labrador has won with more regularity than almost any other active NCAA coach. His career winning percentage of .859 in 11 seasons at the helm of the Tigers ranks first in all of NCAA Division III and second across all divisions. Overall, his sparkling career record stands at 348-55.

Twenty-nine of those wins have come in NCAA Division III Tournament play, including a dominating run to the 2011 national championship. Labrador’s postseason record in 11 straight trips to the NCAA Division III Tournament is 29-10 and includes nine appearances in

regional championship matches, three consecutive trips to the national semifinals between 2005 and 2007 and the university’s first NCAA title in any sport in 34 years in 2011, which was the first NCAA women’s volleyball title for any Ohio school.

In 2007, Wittenberg put together an undefeated regular season, going 32-0, to set new standards for North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) programs. The momentum continued into the postseason as the Tigers picked up two more conference tournament wins and four NCAA Division III Tournament wins before losing to the eventual national champion Washington University in the national semifinals. During the unbeaten streak, Wittenberg won 17 consecutive matches without dropping a single game and posted a consecutive games streak of 54 in a row, which ranks No. 2 in NCAA Division III history.

While the 2011 regular season didn’t measure up to the 2007 standards, the Tigers heated up at just the right time, ripping off six NCAA Division III Tournament victories (against five nationally ranked opponents) while dropping just a single set. After the season, Labrador was named American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) National Coach of the Year, a piece of hardware that now sits alongside Great Lakes Region Coach of the Year awards earned in 2004 and 2007 and NCAC Coach of the Year awards earned in 2006, 2007, 2010, 2011 and 2013.

Under Labrador’s guidance, 12 Tiger student-athletes have garnered All-America accolades, including the most highly decorated athlete in Wittenberg history, Sarah Yuskewich, who holds the Division III record for assists in a season and was a three-time first-team All-America honoree.

The Tigers have dominated the NCAC under Labrador’s training. The Red and White have amassed a phenomenal 130-2 record in conference play under Labrador and have hoisted 10 regular season championship trophies and 10

conference tournament trophies. In addition, Wittenberg has won five NCAA Division III Tournament Regional crowns during that time.

Wittenberg has not only excelled on the court but also in the classroom under Labrador’s guidance. The Tigers have earned the AVCA Team Academic Award, given to teams that cumulatively average a 3.3 grade point average or higher, nine times since Labrador took the position in 2003. Additionally, eight Wittenberg players have earned CoSIDA Academic All-District awards, with Emily Bell and Kimmie Dyer going on to become just the second and third Wittenberg volleyball players in school history to pick up Academic All-America honors (Bell: second-team in 2007; Dyer: third-team in 2011).

The Tigers have even found success internationally during Labrador’s career. In the summers of 2004, 2007, 2010 and 2013, the Wittenberg volleyball team competed in Spain. Labrador and his father, Jose, led the team on educational and cultural tours in historic towns and cities on off-days between competition dates against semi-pro and professional teams. Not surprisingly, each season following a team trip to Spain, the Tigers found tremendous levels of success. The 2004 season resulted in a then program-best 35-3 overall record, with Labrador earning his first NCAA Division III Great Lakes Region Coach of the Year honors. Those achievements were topped in 2007 with an NCAA final four appearance and in 2010 and 2013, the Tigers were stopped only by No. 1-ranked Calvin, which went on to win the national title each year.

The community has benefited from the Tiger coach during the annual Wittenberg Fall Classic, which Labrador introduced in 2005. That year, Labrador organized a clothing drive in conjunction with the tournament in which participating teams and fans made donations to Hurricane Katrina victims. In 2007, the event focused on breast cancer awareness as Labrador provided pink warm-up shirts for all the teams and contributed profits from the tournament to the American Cancer Society.

Labrador graduated from Hiram College, a member of the NCAC along with Wittenberg, in 1995 with degrees in psychology and exercise and sport science. He also holds a master of science from Miami University in sport studies, which he earned in 1997. He came to Wittenberg after four years as an assistant coach at Miami (Ohio) University, where he was active in all phases of the program, including scouting and game preparation, recruiting, skill development and summer camps.

Labrador and his wife Jill, a Title 1 Intervention Coach, reside in Yellow Springs with their daughters, Olivia and Isabel.

Name Year(s) Matches Wins Losses Pct. Dottie Lemieux 1979-82 108 36 72 .333 A.D. Rodrigo 1983 23 12 11 .522 Jim Orr 1984-85 64 32 32 .500 Fran Ralson 1986 32 11 21 .344 Paul Gibboney 1987-88 65 34 31 .523 Cynthia Holliday 1989-93 175 109 66 .623 Connie Surowicz 1994-02 347 253 94 .729 Paco Labrador 2003-present 403 348 55 .864 Totals 1979-present 1217 835 382 .686

Coaching Staff

Head Coach Paco Labrador

Hallie Donathan was named the full-time assistant coach of Wittenberg volleyball in 2014 after helping the Tigers to their fourth consecutive NCAA Division III Regional Championship match in her first year on the coaching staff as a volunteer in 2013.

In addition to coaching the Tigers in 2013, Donathan helped lead the New Carlisle Tecumseh High School volleyball team to a 14-10 overall record and 5-5 mark in the Central Buckeye Conference.

A four-year letterwinner as a setter for the Tigers, Donathan climbed to eighth in the program’s record for career assists after leading the team in the category as a senior and team captain in 2012. In 2011, she ranked eighth in the North Coast Athletic Conference in assists per set as she played a key role in the Tigers’ run to their first-ever NCAA Division III national championship.

Donathan, a 2009 graduate of Tippecanoe High School in Tipp City, Ohio, earned her bachelor’s degree in biology from Wittenberg in 2013.

Assistant Coach Hallie Donathan

Head Coaching Ledger

A HISTORY OF SUCCESS

AVCA ALL-AMERICANS8 First Team • 8 Second Team7 Third Team • 8 Honorable Mention

31

INTERNATIONAL SUMMER TOURSConducted Every Three Years2004 • 2007 • 2010 • 2013 • NEXT TRIP: 2016

4

NCAA TOURNAMENT APPEARANCESBest in the North Coast Athletic Conference19NCAC PLAYERS OF THE YEAR1992 • 1993 • 1995 • 1997 (2) • 1998 • 1999 • 2000 • 20012002 • 2003 • 2004 • 2007 • 2008 • 2011 • 2012 • 201317

LABRADOR CAREER WIN PERCENTAGEBest Among Active NCAA Division III CoachesSecond Among Active Coaches Across All NCAA Divisions.864

WEEKS RANKED IN AVCA TOP 10Fifth All-Time Among NCAA Division III Programs134

AVCA TEAM ACADEMIC AWARDS12

NCAA FINAL FOUR APPEARANCES2005 • 2006 • 2007 • 20114

NATIONAL CHAMPIONS!2011

2014-2015 VOLLEYBALL

Athletics Facilities

PAM EVANS SMITH ARENA

ROSENCRANS FITNESS CENTER

EDWARDS-MAURER FIELD

HPER CENTER NATATORIUM

CARLETON DAVIDSON STADIUM

Wittenberg Athletics FacilitiesWittenberg’s athletics facilities are a unique

blend of old and new, providing opportunities for a wide variety of recreational and fitness activities. The Health, Physical Education and Recreation Center (HPERC) is the centerpiece of the complex and hub of activity throughout the year. The main unit can be converted to three full-sized basketball courts or three volleyball courts. It seats 3,000 spectators for intercollegiate athletic events, and 4,300 for concerts and other public events.

A second unit houses four racquetball courts with an upper balcony for instruction and two golf practice rooms with state-of-the-art equipment. Wittenberg’s Natatorium features a 25-meter by 25-yard swimming pool with one- and three-meter diving boards and a spectator viewing area. The Kremchek Family Athletic Training Room was completed in 2012 and includes more than 2,000 square feet of space and the latest in training equipment.

The HPERC also includes the historic Wittenberg Field House, home to Tiger teams since 1929, the Heinzen Strength Center, and the Bob Rosencrans Hall of Honor Fitness Center, which was built in 2005. The strength center and the fitness center house the latest in training equipment to accommodate the wide range of needs of the entire campus.

Edwards-Maurer Field and Earl F. Morris Track were renovated in 2005. Edwards-Maurer Field features an artificial playing surface and Earl F. Morris Track is a 400-meter

track outfitted with a cutting-edge surface. The entire complex is lighted, and it serves as home to the Tiger football, track, field hockey, men’s and women’s soccer, and men’s and women’s lacrosse teams.

The David and Georgiana Albright Tennis Complex was completed in 1997. It houses 12 tennis courts that were re-surfaced in 2012. Six of the courts are lighted, including two sunken center courts with space for seating.

Situated a few blocks from campus are Bill Edwards Field, which offers playing and practice fields, and Betty Dillahunt Field, home of the Tiger softball team. Less than two miles from campus is Carleton Davidson Stadium, which opened in 2004 and is the home of Tiger baseball. Owned and maintained by the City of Springfield, Carleton Davidson Stadium has seating capacity of 1,061, nearly half of which is under cover, a media center, locker rooms with showers and secured storage. The Tigers share the facility with the Champion City Kings, a collegiate summer baseball franchise that started play in the Prospect League in 2014.

In 2014, Wittenberg embarked on an upgrade of its athletics facilities, with the commitment to build a new indoor multi-purpose athletics and recreation facility. Once completed, the facility will provide year-round opportunities that will benefit the entire campus community, including varsity athletic teams, club teams and intramural sports.

2013 SeasonSCHEDULE/RESULTS

8/30 JOHNS HOPKINS % W, 3-08/31 EMORY % L, 3-18/31 ST. THOMAS (MINN.) % L, 3-19/6 vs. Pacific Lutheran # L, 3-09/7 vs. Ohio Northern # W, 3-09/7 at Washington (Mo.) # L, 3-19/13 JUNIATA & L, 3-09/14 OTTERBEIN & W, 3-19/14 MOUNT ST. JOSEPH & W, 3-09/20 OBERLIN * W, 3-09/21 WOOSTER * W, 3-09/21 HEIDELBERG W, 3-09/24 OHIO WESLEYAN * W, 3-09/28 vs. Rose-Hulman (at Transylvania) W, 3-09/28 at Transylvania W, 3-010/1 at Kenyon * W, 3-010/8 at DePauw * W, 3-110/11 vs. Mount Union ^ W, 3-110/11 at Calvin ^ L, 3-010/12 at Hope ^ L, 3-210/12 vs. Bethany (W.V.) ^ W, 3-010/18 at Cedarville L, 3-110/19 BALDWIN WALLACE W, 3-010/25 at Hiram * W, 3-010/26 at Allegheny * W, 3-010/26 vs. Case Western (at Allegheny) W, 3-110/30 DENISON * W, 3-011/1 NORTHWESTERN OHIO W, 3-111/8 ALLEGHENY + W, 3-011/9 DEPAUW + W, 3-011/9 HIRAM + W, 3-011/14 vs. Bluffton $ W, 3-011/15 vs. Chicago $ W, 3-111/16 at Calvin $ L, 3-2

* NCAC Match • % Wittenberg National Invitational# Washington University National Invitational • & Wittenberg Fall Classic

^ Midwest Volleyball Challenge • + NCAC Tournament • $ NCAA Tournament

POSTSEASON AWARDSAll-NCAC: First Team – Kara Seidenstricker, Andrea Behling, Meghan Vodopich Honorable Mention – Emily Kahlig Player of the Year - Andrea Behling Coach of the Year - Paco LabradorNCAC All-Tournament Team: Meghan Vodopich (MVP), Kara Seidenstricker, Camila QuiñonesAll-Great Lakes Region (AVCA): First Team - Kara Seidenstricker Honorable Mention - Andrea Behling, Meghan VodopichAll-America (AVCA): Second Team - Kara SeidenstrickerAcademic All-District (CoSIDA): First Team - Kara SeidenstrickerAcademic All-America (CoSIDA): Third Team - Kara Seidenstricker

In 2013-2014, the Wittenberg Tigers...

North Coast Athletic ConferenceREGULAR SEASON CHAMPIONS

The Tigers flew to Madrid on May 25, 2013, starting a 12-day trip to Spain which included matches against top Spanish competition and numerous educational and cultural opportunities in Toledo, Segovia, Valencia and Soria.

Head Coach Paco Labrador’s philosophy stresses extracurricular and cultural development: “Every student-athlete who comes through our program will have the opportunity to travel abroad once in their four years, which is something we’re very proud of at Wittenberg.”

• Won 5 North Coast Athletic Conference regular season championships in football, women’s soccer, volleyball, women’s lacrosse and men’s golf.

• Finished in the top 5 in the final North Coast Athletic Conference standings in 16 of 23 sports• Finished 3rd in the final standings for the NCAC Dennis Collins Memorial All-Sports Trophy• Earned 6 NCAC Player of the Year trophies• Earned 4 NCAC Coach of the Year trophies• Placed 104 student-athletes on All-North Coast Athletic Conference teams• Placed 21 student-athletes on all-region teams and 8 on All-America teams• Earned 3 CoSIDA/Capital One Academic All-America awards• Finished 91st in the NACDA Director’s Cup (NCAA Division III all-sports comparison) thanks to

postseason appearances by 4 teams

2014-2015 VOLLEYBALL

2014 Season

2014 Volleyball Schedule

KIAH MURRAY

WITTENBERG VOLLEYBALL

CAMILA QUIÑONES

* NCAC Match • % Courtyard by Marriott National Invitational# Washington-St. Louis/ASICS National Invitational

& Wittenberg Fall Classic • ̂ Trinity National InvitationalTo schedule a home match visit, contact Coach Labrador at

flabrador@wittenberg.edu or 937-327-6492

8/29 HOPE % 7:30 PM 8/30 JOHNS HOPKINS % 10:00 AM 8/30 ST. THOMAS (MINN.) % 5:30 PM 9/5 vs. Wheaton # 6:30 PM 9/6 vs. Southwestern (Tex.) # 11:30 AM 9/6 at Washington (Mo.) # 1:30 PM 9/12 CALVIN & 3:30 PM 9/12 HEIDELBERG & 8:00 PM 9/13 JUNIATA & 2:00 PM 9/13 OHIO NORTHERN & 6:00 PM 9/20 at Wooster * 1:00 PM 9/24 at Ohio Wesleyan * 7:00 PM 9/27 at Bluffton 3:00 PM 9/27 vs. Transylvania (at Bluffton) 5:00 PM 9/30 KENYON * 7:00 PM 10/2 at Denison * 7:00 PM 10/7 DEPAUW * 7:00 PM 10/11 WASHINGTON & LEE 1:00 PM 10/11 JOHN CARROLL 5:00 PM 10/17 at Mount Union 7:30 PM 10/18 at Oberlin * 11:00 AM 10/24 HIRAM * 7:00 PM 10/25 ALLEGHENY * 1:00 PM 10/25 MARIETTA 5:00 PM 10/31 at Trinity ̂ 7:00 PM 11/1 vs. Hardin-Simmons ̂ 11:30 AM 11/1 vs. Randolph-Macon ̂ 3:30 PM 11/7-8 NCAC Tournament

The North Coast Athletic Conference and Wittenberg University work together to encourage good sportsmanship on the court, on the field and in the stands. The Wittenberg Athletics Department expects all competitors and spectators to help maintain an open, accepting and competitive environment

in order to promote positive, enjoyable experiences for all involved with Division III athletics.

Student-athletes are primarily responsible for balancing academics and athletics. However, recognizing the pressure that student-athletes face from competing time demands placed upon them by both professors and coaches, we establish the following statement of responsibility. The statement assumes that the student’s primary responsibility is to academic coursework and that practice sessions are always subordinate to class attendance.

Students should work with advisers to schedule courses so that practices and contests are not in conflict with academic courses.

Student-athletes are expected to contact professors in advance in order to resolve conflicts between class attendance and participation in athletic contests. It is recommended that student-athletes miss not more than four sessions of any class in a semester for regular season athletic contests. Permission of a Faculty Athletic Representative is required before additional excused absences will be permitted.

Coaches will, as necessary, establish and maintain communications with the professors of team athletes regarding academic progress. Professors should feel free to contact coaches regarding the academic responsibilities of student-athletes.

Statement of Responsibility for Balance Between Academics & Athletics

On Sunday, Nov. 20, 2011, the volleyball team made history by becoming the first Wittenberg team in 34 years to win an NCAA Division III National Championship, and the first women’s team in school history to take home a national title. Check out the “Road to the Championship” feature on the volleyball team’s homepage on WittenbergTigers.com to see the entire journey.

The Wittenberg Athletic Department is an integral part of the university that strives to achieve the same standards of excellence that exist within various academic disciplines at the university. Further, the athletic department embraces the concept that the student-athletes are first and foremost students, possessing individual rights, academic abilities, personal interests and ambitions comparable to those of other members of the general student body.

Wittenberg University is committed to the principles and practices of amateurism, student-athlete welfare, gender equity, sportsmanship and fair play, cultural diversity and overall athletics excellence, and this commitment shall reflect in every aspect of the athletics departmental operations.

Wittenberg Athletics Philosophy