Wingate’s Collier Named AVCA Southeast Region Coach Of The Year

LEXINGTON, Ky. -- Wingate University head volleyball coach Shelton Collier was honored by the AVCA as the Southeast Region Coach of the Year, officials announced Wednesday. It is the first time Collier has earned the honor.

The back-to-back recipient of the South Atlantic Conference Coach of the Year, Collier guided the Bulldogs to a 31-2 overall record and the top seed in the region this season. Wingate topped the Southeast Region poll all year and hosted the NCAA Division II Regional tournament for the first time in school history.

"It is an honor to be selected coach of the year for our region," Collier says. "I feel very fortunate to have a very hard working and enjoyable group of players to coach. They (the student-athletes) won the matches, which allowed me to be in a position to receive this recognition."

Collier led the Bulldogs to a 16-0 record in the SAC, marking the second consecutive year they have gone through league play undefeated as Wingate claimed its third straight regular season title. The Bulldogs also claimed the Food Lion SAC championship for the third straight year while earning an NCAA Tournament bid for the fourth straight season and fifth time in the last six years.

Wingate's 33-2 record in 2007 led the NCAA Division II in winning percentage, while the 31-2 record in 2008 ranks third. The 2008 season was Collier's seventh with the Bulldogs; he has a Wingate record of 174-50 in those years, for a winning percentage of .777. In his 27 years of coaching (including stints at the University of Pittsburgh and Georgia Tech), Collier is 742-257 for a career .743 winning percentage.

Collier is ranked fourth among active Division II coaches in wins and 20th in winning percentage. He has led the Bulldogs to four SAC Tournament titles in his seven years. Collier was 271-114 in his 11 years at Georgia Tech, holding the school record in wins and winning percentage. He had a 565-207 record in Division I volleyball, ranking in the top 15 in wins and winning percentage.

During his 27-year career, Collier has earned numerous coaching honors. He has been named the Big East Coach of the Year, ACC Coach of the Year, SAC Coach of the Year as well as Tachikara Southeast Region Coach of the Year, Georgia Collegiate Coach of the Year, South Region Coach of the Year, East Region Coach of the Year and Northeast Regional Coach of the Year.

Collier has also spent several summers coaching the USA Youth National Team. He led the 2003 USA Youth National Team to a fourth-place finish at the World Championships, the best finish ever for a USA Youth team. The journey to the final four included an upset over top-ranked Russia. Collier guided the 2004 and 2006 team to the gold medal at the NORECA Tournament, qualifying for the World Championships.

Founded in 1896, Wingate University is a private four-year co-educational institution of 2,129 students, offering active learning opportunities through personalized instruction, international study, faith development, career discovery and community service.

Wingate offers 40 undergraduate majors in arts and sciences, business, education, fine arts, music and sport sciences. It also offers graduate degrees in business, education, physical education, physician assistant studies, sport administration and the doctor of pharmacy degree.

Bulldog student-athletes compete in 17 NCAA Division II sports. Wingate University has won the South Atlantic Conference Athletic Excellence Award for the past two years.

Wingate University is ranked number three among NCAA Division II Academic All-America® producing schools in the 2000's with 30 honorees during this millennium. Only Pittsburg State (Kan.) University and Truman State (Mo.) University have produced more Academic All-America® honorees during this time period. Wingate's 39 Academic All-America® honorees (lifetime) is tops among all SAC schools.