Herron named head volleyball coach

March 25, 2002

Washburn Director of Athletics Loren Ferre' announced today that Chris Herron will be the new head coach of the Washburn Lady Blues volleyball team.

"I'm very excited to have Chris on board," said Ferre'. "He has been successful at both the high school and collegiate level and brings extensive knowledge and experience to our program."

"This is a great opportunity; there is a lot of potential for this program to be very successful," said Herron. "I believe there is enough talent in the area to be successful in the conference and region."

Herron spent the previous three seasons as the head coach of Benedictine College, where he compiled a 75-29 record. After going 13-15 in his first year in 1999, Herron guided the Ravens to their first-ever Heart of America Athletic Conference title and the squad's highest win total ever with a 30-8 record in 2000.

He led the Ravens to a 32-6 record last fall and garnered HAAC Coach of the year honors for the second straight season. The squad also won its first-ever HAAC Postseason Conference Tournament championship in 2001.

Benedictine also cracked the national top 25 poll for the first time in school history, by finishing 23rd in the final NAIA rankings.

Herron spent 13 years prior to going to Benedictine as the head coach at Tonganoxie High School. During that time Herron's teams posted an overall record of 366-88. He began his coaching career at Golden City High School in Golden City, Mo. , where he posted a 21-17 record in two seasons from 1984-85.

Two of his teams received the state's highest award of "Program of the Year" in 1989 and 1996 from the Kansas Volleyball Coaches Association. He also led four of his teams to the state tournament.

Herron also has coached USAV juniors volleyball for the past 14 winters. His last two teams have been Heart of America Region 18 Champions. His teams have made four National Tournament appearances, in 1993, 1999, 2000, 2001.

He is a 1980 graduate of the College of the Ozarks, where he earned a Bachelor's of Science in Physical Education.