Sportswomen of Colorado, College Coach of the Year -- 1994

For the past quarter century, Linda Delk has served as head coach of the University of Northern Colorado women's volleyball team. Right from the start, her teams brought UNC national acclaim. From 1979-81, the Bears made three-straight AIAW national tournament appearances, finishing fourth, seventh and third, respectively. Coach Delk hasn't looked back since, establishing one of the elite programs in the country and compiling an impressive list of credentials which continues to grow.

All told, her stellar 683-275 (.713) career record ranks her among the top-20 active Division II coaches in career victories and winning percentage. Delk's rise in the coaching ranks is based on consistency. She guided the Bears to 18-straight winning seasons from 1979-95 and 17 consecutive years of 20 or more victories from 1980-95. The Bears have also had eleven 30-win seasons and three 40-win seasons in addition to 15 national tournament appearances (three AIAW, 12 NCAA).

Along the way, the Bears made seven-straight trips to the NCAA Division II playoffs and 11 appearances dating back to 1982. Delk has also directed UNC to the Elite Eight Championships four of the past nine seasons, including a third-place finish in 1994 and a fourth-place finish in 1993. In 1995, UNC compiled a 31-3 overall record, which established school records for fewest losses in a season and best winning percentage at .912.

In addition, Delk has led her squads to five North Central Conference championships. The Bears won NCC tournament titles in 1979, 1980 and 1993. In 1994, the NCC went to a home-and-away round-robin format to determine its champion. Under this format, the Bears posted back-to-back 17-1 league records to win the 1994 and 1995 titles.

Under Delk's leadership, UNC won three Intermountain Athletic Conference titles from 1979-81 and Continental Divide Conference crowns in 1982 and 1987.

Delk's accomplishments at UNC have not gone unnoticed. In 1993, 1994 and 1995, she was named the North Central Conference Coach of the Year. Delk was also recognized as the Continental Divide Conference Coach of the Year in 1982, 1984 and 1987. In addition, Delk was named the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) North Central Region Coach of the Year in 1990, 1993 and 1999. She also earned AIAW Region VII Coach of the Year awards in 1980 and 1981.

Statewide recognition has followed Delk as well. In 1981, she was selected as the Young Professional/Career Woman of Colorado, and in March of 1995, she was recognized by the Sportswomen of Colorado as its 1994 College Coach of the Year. In 1993, Delk was honored for her 500 career victories.

Recognition of Delk's student-athletes have followed the successful pattern set by her teams. Delk has coached 15 All-America players, including three AVCA First Team All-Americans -- Dana Cash, Tatjana Smith and Debbie Ponis, and three AIAW First Team All-Americans - Carla Stearns, Carol Johnson Klein and Kristy Jordan. In addition, Delk's players have earned all-conference honors a total of 51 times and all-region accolades 30 times.

But wins and loses don't tell the whole story about Delk. Delk fosters academic excellence, and she takes pride in the fact that her student-athletes excel in the classroom. Her players have been named academic all-conference 28 times. Six of her players - Lisa Rupp, Terri DeRuiter, Teresa Martin, Debbie Ponis, Stormie Wells and Joyce Jordahl - have been recognized by GTE and the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) as Academic All-America performers.

Delk plays an active role in the promotion of volleyball. She is a voting member for the USA Today/AVCA Division II Top 25 poll and is a member of the United States Volleyball Association (USVBA) and the AVCA. From 1995 to 1998, Delk served on the AVCA Board of Directors as the Division II representative and has served as an NCAA regional chair and a member of the NCAA Volleyball National Committee.

Delk began her volleyball career as a player, competing in USVBA state, regional and national tournaments in 1974 and 1975. In 1972, Delk had her first chance to step on the court as a coach with the ATC team at Lowry Air Force Base. She then coached at Lakewood High School during the 1975 season. From there, she served as the graduate coach at UNC from 1976-78. A native of Columbus, Ohio, Delk graduated from The Ohio State University in 1970 with her bachelor's degree in physical education. She earned her master's degree in coaching and administration from UNC in 1978.

Delk Among NCAA Division II Active Coaches

Victories
RankCoach (School)                      VictoriesYears
1.Peggy Martin (Central Missouri State)84125
2.Linda Delk (Northern Colorado)        68325
3.Karen Lockyer (Lewis)                63426
4.Kathleen Brasfield (Angelo State)58923
5.Maxine Mehus (Emporia State        56622
6.Chris Catanach (Tampa)                54717
7.Dianne Glowatzke (St. Cloud State)51924
8.Rosie Wegrich (Cal Poly Pomona)        50025
9.Rusty Crick (Mesa State)        49519
10.Sharon Peterson (Hawaii-Hilo)        48723
11.Donnna Palivec (Bemidji State)        47621
12.Sandy Hoffman (Bentley)                47519
13.Denise Silvester (Mo.-St. Louis)46219
14.Matt Peck (North Alabama)        44817
15.Sue Uebel (Ashland)                43922

Delk's Milestones
Victory Game Scores
50Eastern New Mexico, Oct. 20, 1979
15-8, 15-7, 15-10

100Colorado College, Nov. 4, 1980
15-4, 15-12, 15-3

150Central Missouri State, Dec. 3, 1981
15-11, 12-15, 15-7

200Colorado College, Oct. 4, 1983
17-19, 15-13, 11-15, 15-8

250West Texas State, Nov. 8, 1984
15-11, 10-15, 15-3, 15-13

300Southeast Missouri State, Oct. 18, 1986
15-9, 10-15, 15-10

350Metro State, Nov. 11, 1987
12-15, 15-8, 15-7, 15-5

400Regis, Nov. 8, 1989
14-16, 16-14, 15-1, 15-13

450Minnesota-Duluth, Nov. 9, 1991
15-4, 15-12, 14-16, 15-4

500Air Force, Sept. 24, 1993
15-8, 15-3, 15-9

550Nebraska-Kearney, Nov. 19, 1994
11-15, 15-6, 15-13, 15-9

600Texas Lutheran, Sept. 13, 1997
15-2, 15-8, 15-9

650Nebraska-Omaha, Oct. 15, 1999
12-15, 15-9, 8-15, 15-6, 15-8