Rhodes' Lambert elected to AVCA Board of Directors

Rhodes' Lambert elected to AVCA Board of Directors

(Story courtesy of the AVCA website)

LEXINGTON, Ky.
- The American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) is pleased to announce the election of two member coaches to its Board of Directors.  Samantha Lambert, head coach at Rhodes College, is the new Division III Women’s Representative, and Patrick Dorywalski, head coach at the Stevens Institute of Technology, is the new Division III Men’s Representative.

Lambert will replace Becky Schmidt after she admirably served as the Division III Women’s Representative for the past three years.  However, Dorywalksi is the first Division III Men’s Representative to appear on the AVCA Board of Directors, as the new position was voted onto the Board this past May by the current members.

Their new positions will take effect January 1, 2012.

Samantha Lambert – NCAA Women’s Division III Representative

Samantha Lambert is in her 13th year as Rhodes' head women's volleyball coach in 2011. Lambert arrived at Rhodes in the spring of 1999 and since that time has 200+ coaching victories to her credit. Lambert eclipsed the 200-win mark during the 2008 season when the Lynx defeated the Sewanee Tigers and is currently the program’s all-time leader in wins.

Lambert has also been actively involved in coaching Memphis area youth volleyball since her arrival to Memphis. She is currently the director for the Memphis Juniors Volleyball Association (MJVA), and helped coach two of the club's teams (13s and 18s) to berths in the Junior Olympic Volleyball Championships in 2001.  She also serves on the board of directors for the Delta Region of USA Volleyball along with being an IMPACT Instructor for USA Volleyball.  For her work with the Delta Region, Lambert was awarded the Robert L Lindsey Meritorious Service Award from USA Volleyball in 2003.

“Samantha is a great choice for our NCAA DIII women’s board representative,” said AVCA Executive Director Kathy DeBoer.  “She has been engaged in leadership activities at the NCAA and AVCA level her entire career and is a giver to our profession.“

Patrick Dorywalski – NCAA Men’s Division III Representative

In his 22 seasons as head coach of the Stevens Institute of Technology men’s volleyball team, Patrick Dorywalski’s contributions to intercollegiate volleyball will be forever etched into the history books. One of the nation’s leading instructors in the sport of volleyball, he started both the men’s and women’s programs from their inception at Stevens. Dorywalski, who owns a .645 career winning percentage, also stands as the school’s all-time winningest coach in any sport with a combined 481 career victories.

Under Dorywalski’s tutelage, the men’s team has posted a 271-109 mark over the last 11 years while averaging 25 wins per season. They have also captured the North East Collegiate Volleyball Association Metro Division crown 10 times in the past twelve seasons. Subsequently, Dorywalski has produced a total of five American Volleyball Coaches Association All-American recipients, three CoSIDA Academic All-Americans.

“As a veteran coach, Patrick has played a key role in shepherding DIII men’s volleyball from an emerging sport into an NCAA Championship sport,” said DeBoer.  “He is ideally suited to assume the role of the DIII Men’s Representative on the AVCA board."

2012 AVCA Board of Directors

•    Rob Patrick, University of Tennessee - President
•    Raymond Bechard, University of Kansas - Past President
•    Anne Kordes, University of Louisville - President-Elect
•    Kevin Hambly, University of Illinois - NCAA Women’s Division I Representative
•    Cody Hein, Chico State - NCAA Women’s Division II Representative
•    Samantha Lambert, Rhodes College - NCAA Women’s Division III Representative
•    Katy Meyer, Embry-Riddle University (Ariz.) - NAIA Representative
•    David Rehr, Blinn College - Two-Year Colleges Representative
•    John Kosty, Stanford University – NCAA Division I-II Men's Representative
•    Patrick Dorywalksi, Stevens Institute of Technology – NCAA Division III Men’s Representative
•    Tracy Smith, Texas State University-San Marcos - Assistant Coach Representative
•    John Sample, Texas Advantage Volleyball – Club Representative
•    Jodi Monroe, Bedford High School – High School Representative
•    Deitre Collins-Parker, San Diego State University - Minority Coach Representative
•    Cecile Reynaud - Education and Publications Representative
•    Kelly Sheffield, University of Dayton, Awards Representative
•    T.J. Meagher - Legislative Representative
•    Sandy Vong - At-Large Representative 

Happy Holidays from the SCAC!
December 25, 2011 Happy Holidays from the SCAC!