Westminster Adds Men’s Volleyball as the 19th Varsity Sport Sponsored by the College
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Fulton, Mo. – Oct. 2, 2023:The Westminster College Department of Intercollegiate Athletics announced today the addition of men’s volleyball as the 19th varsity sport sponsored by the College.
Blue Jays men’s volleyball will officially begin competing in the spring of 2025 under current Head Women’s Volleyball Coach Dalton Tucker, who will step into the new role while maintaining his current women’s volleyball coaching responsibilities.“We are thrilled to continue to expand the athletic opportunities we offer to students here at Westminster College,” said Derek Zander, Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics, Athletics Advancement, and Strategic Programs at Westminster College. “Given the success of our women’s volleyball program led by coach Tucker, we are confident in his ability to create a successful men’s program our campus community and alumni can be proud of.”
The addition of men’s volleyball will provide more opportunities to compete in intercollegiate athletics at Westminster College. These opportunities take into account a relatively recent decision by the Missouri State High School Activities Association to transition boys’ volleyball into a sanctioned sport.
Tucker, who is in his third year at the helm of the women’s volleyball program, is well-positioned to start up Blue Jays men’s volleyball as a result of playing collegiate volleyball for two start-up programs. He is also connected in the St. Louis- and Kansas City-area club volleyball scene.
In his three years leading Blue Jays women’s volleyball, Tucker took his team to the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Tournament each year, qualifying for the championship game on two occasions.
His team also recently received the prestigious 2023 USMC/AVCA Team Academic Award ― an honor bestowed upon a team for collectively achieving a year-long grade point average of 3.3 or higher on a 4.0 scale.
Prior to coaching at Westminster, Tucker served as an assistant coach at University of Illinois Springfield, an NCAA Division II program in the Great Lakes Valley Conference, where he helped the Prairie Stars engineer an 11-win improvement in the 2017 season. Tucker was then hired by Grinnell College and witnessed the Pioneers finish second in the Midwest Conference in 2018. He also coached the Springfield Shock VBC, a position he began in 2017, and led the club team to a second-place finish at the AAU National Championships. “I would like to thank President Lofe and Derek Zander for their continued support and trust in me to lead men’s volleyball at Westminster College,” Tucker said. “I look forward to working with our assistant coach, Nicholas Allen, to build a program centered on academic and competitive excellence.”
ABOUT THE BLUE JAYS AND WESTMINSTER COLLEGE:The Department of Athletics at Westminster College in Fulton, Missouri, boasts 19 varsity sports teams and is a member of the NCAA Division III, the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SLIAC), and Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC). Founded in 1851 and home of Winston Churchill’s “Iron Curtain” speech, Westminster College is ranked prestigiously by The Princeton Review as one of the “Best 150 colleges in the Midwest” for 2024. The independent think tank Third Way recently singled out the small, private college as one of the nation’s best among colleges and universities in the United States in terms of economic mobility and return on investment. New graduates experience a more than 90% placement rate in jobs or graduate school within six months of graduation, while Westminster alumni overall are in the top 16% nationwide for graduate earnings. Additionally, U.S. News & World Report places the College in a unique category by itself, listing it as the only National Liberal Arts college in Missouri. Westminster has long been recognized for its focus on educating and inspiring students to make an impact on the world around them. Find out more about Westminster College by visiting our website.
FOR MORE INFORMATION:Contact Sarah Backer at 573-220-9038 or [email protected].
