Mercer volleyball’s new head coach has ties to Southern Conference

Derek Schroeder, who has 169 career wins at the NCAA Division I level, was named the volleyball head coach at Mercer on Tuesday.

Schroeder knows the Southern Conference well, having worked as the head coach at Samford for eight years and an assistant coach at Furman for four seasons. He is the 12th head coach in Mercer indoor volleyball history and the second in Mercer beach volleyball history.

“This is a great day for Mercer volleyball and Mercer University as a whole,” Cole said. “Coach Schroeder is a proven winner with experience in the Southern Conference, and I cannot wait to see how he takes our indoor and beach volleyball programs to the next level as we aim for conference championships.”

Schroeder led Samford to two NCAA Tournament berths and Southern Conference Tournament titles in 2011 and 2014 while winning 20-plus matches in five seasons.

“Thank you to Jim Cole and Sybil Blalock for taking the time to get to know me and provide this opportunity to guide Mercer’s volleyball programs,” Schroeder said. “I could not say yes fast enough when I received the offer. I am ready to get started and build something special with the Bears.”

This story was originally published July 25, 2017 at 4:14 PM with the headline "Mercer volleyball’s new head coach has ties to Southern Conference."