University Park, Pa., May 31, 2005 ¨C Penn State women¡¯s volleyball head coach Russ Rose and Stanford women¡¯s volleyball head coach John Dunning are this year¡¯s recipients of the USA Volleyball All-Time Great Coach Awards. Rose is the first Big Ten coach ever to receive the honor.

In receiving the 2005 Donald S. Shondell Contemporary Division Award, Rose and Dunning join the company of the best volleyball coaches in history, including previous Olympic coaches as well as many of their peers. The award is presented each year by USA Volleyball, the National Governing Body of the sport, to recognize the all-time great coaches of volleyball.

In 26 seasons at Penn State, Rose has collected wins at a staggering pace. His overall record is 828-151, and Rose¡¯s .846 winning percentage ranks second nationally among active coaches. His squads have secured 30 or more wins in a season 18 times and 36 or more victories six times. Never having posted less than 22 wins in a season, Rose earned his 800th career victory at Penn State on Sept. 3, 2004, with a win over Rutgers. In doing so he became only the sixth NCAA Division I coach to reach the milestone.

Rose, a two-time AVCA National Coach of the Year, six-time Big Ten Coach of the Year and six-time Atlantic-10 Conference Coach of the Year, has collected eight Big Ten titles in 14 years and has firmly entrenched the Nittany Lions among the elite programs in the nation. Rose¡¯s 1999 squad won the NCAA Championship with a near-perfect record of 36-1 after losing in the championship match in both 1997 and 1998. His 1993 squad also advanced to the championship match. Rose¡¯s teams have advanced to the NCAA Tournament for 24 consecutive seasons and he has coached at least one All-American player in 24 of his 26 seasons.

Dunning, who won his second NCAA Championship with Stanford last December (and fourth overall), will embark on his fifth year as Stanford¡¯s head coach later this year. He has a 120-20 record on ¡°The Farm¡± and boasts an overall mark of 557-122 in 20 years of coaching. In 2001, Dunning became the first Division I head coach to win a national championship in his first season at two different schools (Pacific and Stanford). He can also make another claim: he is one of only two coaches to have captured national titles on three different levels. Dunning has guided squads to national championships on the high school, club (Junior Olympic) and collegiate ranks.

He was tabbed AVCA National Coach of the Year in 2001 as well as Pacific-10 Conference Coach of the Year. He is 15-2 in postseason play as the Cardinal head coach. Dunning, who spent 16 seasons at Pacific before moving to Palo Alto, compiled an impressive 468-104 (.818) record during his tenure in Stockton, Calif. He led the Tigers to two NCAA Championships, a NCAA runner-up finish, five Big West Conference titles and 16 consecutive NCAA postseason tournament bids.

Both Dunning and Rose will be presented with their awards prior to a home match during their upcoming collegiate seasons.

The Nittany Lions open up the season at the AVCA/NACWAA College Volleyball Showcase at the Qwest Center in Omaha, Neb. The tournament features powerhouses Stanford, Nebraska and Hawaii, with Penn State facing the defending national champion Cardinal on Friday, Aug. 26 and either the Cornhuskers or Wahine on Saturday, Aug. 27.

Penn State returns five starters from last season¡¯s 29-3 Big Ten Champion squad that advanced to the NCAA Regional Semifinal match, including first team AVCA All-American senior setter Sam Tortorello (Shorewood, Ill.), first team All-Big Ten senior libero Kaleena Walters (Mt. Lebanon, Pa.) and 2004 Big Ten Freshman of the Year outside hitter Kate Price (Fraser, Mich.).

USA Volleyball¡¯s All-Time Great Coaches List
Donald S. Shondell Contemporary Division

1995¡ªDoug Beal, Al Scates
1996¡ªMarilyn McReavy-Nolen, Don Shondell
1997¡ªLinda Dollar
1998¡ªNo award presented
1999¡ªMarv Dunphy, Arie Selinger
2000¡ªAndy Banachowski, Carl McGown
2001¡ªElaine Michaelis
2002¡ªDave Shoji
2003¡ªBrian Gimmillaro
2004¡ªMick Haley
2005¡ªJohn Dunning, Russ Rose

For more information on the Penn State women's volleyball team, please visit www.GoPSUsports.com.