When Hall of Fame coach Linda Delk retired three seasons ago, assistant coach Ron Alexander was given the duty of becoming the third coach in the history of the program and helping lead it from the Division II ranks into Division I. Three years later the program is right where it needs to be, as Alexander has led the team to 88 wins, the seventh-most among all Division I teams in that time period, a Division I Independent Championship in 2003 and a tie for first at the championship a season ago. Alexander will lead the program through one more year of independent play in 2005 before the team officially joins the Big Sky Conference in 2006. "Since we left Division II and started our progression towards Division I, we have had a grand scheme on how we would be ready for a conference," Alexander said. "As soon as the focus shifted to the Big Sky, we knew that it was a very solid conference for us to belong in and we have started to make decisions that will make us ready to be a solid contributor in 2006." Alexander's squad will be eligible for both the Big Sky Championship and a NCAA berth in 2006, a year ahead of the rest of the Northern Colorado programs (due to a petition to the NCAA). "Our goal is to be knocking on the door of being a top-25 program and competing for annual NCAA Tournament bids," Alexander said. "We have to send a message to other teams that we definitely belong at this level. We will not be content with being average at the Division I level. We do not simply want to make the NCAA Tournament and lose in the first round, we want to make some noise."

Among all Division I programs over the past three seasons, only six others (Hawaii, Florida, Georgia Tech, Minnesota, Nebraska and USC) have won more matches than the Bears (88) and only four (Hawaii, USC, Nebraska and Florida) have suffered fewer losses than Northern Colorado (14). That is consistent with what Alexander has done with his programs - win a lot and lose very little. Taking into account his first three years on the UNC bench and his last two years as a high school coach at Fort Morgan High School (1998-99), his teams have amassed an amazing 149-15 (.909) record in that time period.

In 2004, Alexander guided the Bears to 25 wins, the 22nd time in school history (in 29 total seasons) the program had won 20 or more matches in a year. Against one of the tougher schedules in program history (a schedule that featured a pair of NCAA Tournament teams in Wichita State and Utah and several other top-notch opponents), the Bears started the season 5-5, but won 20 of their final 24 matches and finished 5-1 at the Division I Independent Championship, good enough to tie for first place with IPFW (the eventual champion on a tiebreaker) and South Dakota State. The Bears had three players named first-team D-I All-Independent, including Erin Deffenbaugh, who was named Player of the Year, and Corrinne Chapin, who was honored as Setter of the Year.

Deffenbaugh finished her outstanding All-American career by setting the NCAA Division II record for career attacks (6,465) and finishing third in career kills (2,529). All of this despite missing the 2003 season with a knee injury, a year after winning the AVCA National Player of the Year honor in 2002 after leading the Bears to a NCAA Elite 8 finish. In total, Alexander has coached three All-Americans (to a total of four awards) including Deffenbaugh, Teale Goble (2002) and the Bears all-time leader in assists, Linnea Kiilsgaard (2002 & 2003). In 2003, Alexander guided Northern Colorado to a 32-2 record and the D-I Independent Championship in the program's first season of Division I volleyball action. After a pair of losses in the team's first eight matches, Alexander was able to find the right combination of players and substitutions and the team did not suffer another loss again during the season's final 26 matches. The Bears did not just win those matches but dominated their opponents along the way, winning 21 of those contests in convincing 3-0 fashion. Along the way, the Bears established the school mark for consecutive matches won (26), consecutive sets won (40) and were victorious in 78 of the final 84 total sets in which they played.

During the 2002 season, the team's final as a Division II team and Alexander's first as head coach, the Bears had a 31-3 record, climbed to a No. 2 national ranking (which matched the highest ranking in school history), won both the North Central Conference (NCC) and North Central Regional Championships and earned a berth in the NCAA Elite 8 for the fifth time in school history. Four times during the season UNC had the AVCA National Player of the Week and three Bears were named All-American, including Deffenbaugh, who became the program's first AVCA National Player of the Year. For his outstanding efforts, Alexander was named both the NCC and North Central Region Coach of the Year. "I wish we could have finished off 2003 with the chance to win a national title but we simply ran out of time with the transition to Division I; I really think we would have won it all at the Division II level in 2003 and we probably should have gone undefeated in 2003 as both matches we lost we had our chances to win. It is a real testament to our kids on how hard-working and hard-nosed they were." In those first two years as coach (2002-03), Alexander guided the program to a 63-5 record, the best two-year stretch in school history. Alexander's teams also get the job done in the classroom, as one player has been named a CoSIDA Academic All-American in each of his first three seasons as a head coach, increasing the program's total to nine student-athlete recipients of that award in program history. Goble earned those honors in 2002 (along with the prestigious NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship), Kristi Krom was honored in 2003 after compiling a perfect 4.0 G.P.A. and Deffenbaugh earned the honor in 2004 as the Bears were included at the University Division (Division I) for the first time. Her award marked the first-ever first-team Division I Academic All-American award in school history and she was also awarded the NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship. During that period, the team also has had 36 Northern Colorado Scholar Athletes, four academic all-conference selections, five CoSIDA Academic All-District choices and their cumulative grade point averages rank near the top of all Northern Colorado sports. "That is what we want our program to stand for," Alexander said. "We want excellence on the court, excellence in the classroom and excellence in the community. All coaches always say that the athletes are there for academics but we really do believe that here. We set our goals high and I think if you are hard-working in the classroom, it is easy to be hard-working on the court." Prior to taking over the reins as head coach, Alexander served as an assistant under Delk for two seasons (2000-01) as the Bears won 43 total matches. Delk, a member of the Northern Colorado & Colorado Sportswomen Hall of Fames, won 702 matches in her 26-year career before retiring and making way for Alexander to ascend into the head coaching role. Alexander, a native of Brush, Colo., graduated from Northern Colorado in 1988 with a degree in physical education (K-12) and went on to work at Fort Morgan High School. In 12 seasons as head volleyball coach at Fort Morgan, Alexander's teams qualified for the state tournament seven times, won six Tri-Valley Volleyball League championships and claimed three Class 4A state titles during the 1990s. He was named Colorado's Volleyball Coach of the Year in both 1992 and 1998. "The biggest difference between being a head coach at the high school and college level is that in high school you can look at your schedule and know which games will be challenges, but at the collegiate level every night is a challenge, and if you do not come to play you are going to lose. "UNC is where I have always dreamed of being a head coach, and I take great pride in my efforts here. I am also pleased that my family can remain in the area. Colorado has been a very special place to me. I am very proud of my northern Colorado roots, and the Greeley area is the type of place that I would like to retire in." In his spare time, Alexander has been a volunteer fireman for the past 12 years, eight in Fort Morgan and the past four in Eaton. He can also be found officiating boys' and girls' high school basketball games. "Being a volunteer firefighter is a good way to give back to the community," Alexander said. "It is very motivating and pleasing to be challenged in that way and the training you receive is fantastic. Officiating high school basketball is a good way to keep you in shape and it is fun to be around high school athletics because so much of my life was spent in high school athletics." Alexander, who received his master's degree in sport and exercise science with an emphasis in sports administration from Northern Colorado in 2003, and his wife, Joanna, have three children, Trey (8), Hannah (6) and Benjamin (1). They currently reside in Eaton.

Head Coaching Resume

Year	School	Record	Highlights
2002	Northern Colorado	31-3 (.912)	Regional Coach of the Year; NCC Champions; NCAA Elite 8 Appearance
2003	Northern Colorado	32-2 (.941)	26-Match Win Streak; School Record Win %; D-I Independent Champs
2004	Northern Colorado	25-9 (.735)	Won 20 of Final 24 matches; Tied for 1st at D-I Ind. Championships
3 yrs.	Head Coaching Record	88-14 (.863)