T E X A S A & M V O L L E Y B A L L C O A C H I N G S TA F F
LAURIE CORBELLI TEXAS A & M HEAD VOLLEYBALL COACH CAREER COACHING RECORD UNIV. OF SAN FRANCISCO
L
aurie Corbelli is beginning her 17th season as the head volleyball coach at Texas A&M. After coaching stints at the University of San Francisco and Santa Clara University, the 1984 Olympic silver medalist was hired by then-athletic director John David Crow in March 1993 to take over a promising women’s volleyball program eager to contend for a conference title and return to the NCAA tournament. Corbelli’s husband, John, an assistant coach for the ’84 Olympic Team, was hired as assistant coach, forming one of most highly respected coaching duos in the country. The couple utilized their elite playing experiences and coaching knowledge to rebuild a program and rapidly develop it into a top national contender that has for the most part been a permanent fixture in the NCAA tournament. It didn’t take long for Laurie to earn the honorable distinction of being the winningest coach in the history of the A&M volleyball program. Laurie, who sports an overall 23-year career record of 443264 (.627), enters the 2009 campaign with a 343-158 record and a .685 winning percentage in 16 seasons at A&M.
Year W
Overall Conference L Pct. W L Pct.
Finish Postseason
1986
8
24
.250
2
10
.167
7th
1987
16
13
.551
9
5
.642
3rd
1988
10
16
.385
7
7
.500
3rd
1989
5
18
.217
4
10
.285
7th
1990
14
13
.519
5
9
.357
T-5th
1991
26
11
.703
10
4
.714
2nd
NIVC (3rd)
1992
21
11
.656
13
1
.929
1st
0-1 NCAA (1st Round)
1993
27
8
.771
7
3
.700
2nd
1-1 NCAA (2nd Round)
1994
19
14
.576
6
4
.600
3rd
1-1 NCAA (2nd Round)
1995
23
7
.767
8
2
.800
2
1-1 NCAA (Regional Semifinal)
1996
25
8
.758 15
5
.750
3rd
1-1 NCAA (2nd Round)
1997
26
8
.765
15
5
.750
4th 2-1 NCAA (Regional Semifinal)
1998
21
9
.700
13
7
.650
4th
1-1 NCAA (2nd Round)
1999
28
6
.824
16
4
.800
2
3-1 NCAA (Regional Final)
2000
20
9
.690
14
6
.700
T-2nd 1-1 NCAA (2nd Round)
2001
26
6
.813
16
4
.800
2nd
3-1 NCAA (Regional Final)
2002
21
10
.677
12
8
.600
5th
1-1 NCAA (2nd Round)
2003
23
10
.697
13
7
.650
T-3
2-1 NCAA (Regional Semifinal)
2004
19
9
.679
14
6
.700
T-3rd 1-1 NCAA (2nd Round)
2005
16
14
.533
9
11
.450
T-6th 0-1 NCAA (1st Round)
2006
12
16
.423
5
15
.250
T-8th
2007
21
10
.677
10
10
.500
T-6th
2008
16
14
.533
11
9
.550
T-4th
SANTA CLARA
TEXAS A&M nd
nd
rd
CAREER TOTAL — 23 YEARS OVERALL 443-264 .627
CONFERENCE 234-152 .606
TEXAS A&M TOTAL — 16 YEARS OVERALL 343-158 .685
CONFERENCE 184-106 .634
The Corbellis directed the Aggies to within one match of reaching the Final Four in both 1999 and 2001 and have led A&M to the NCAA regional semifinals five times. Overall, the Corbellis’ teams have reached the NCAA tournament 13 times in the last 16 years. Furthermore, the Aggies have reached the 20-win milestone 11 of 16 seasons with the Corbellis at the helm, and A&M has been ranked in the final Top 25 Poll nine of the past 14 years. With the addition of this year’s 18th-ranked recruiting class to the 2006 class that was ranked an all-time high No. 4 nationally, extraordinary feats will undoubtedly continue to accumulate.
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T E X A S A &M U N I V E R S I T Y
High School: L.V. Berkner High School, Richardson, Texas College Education: University of San Francisco, Bachelor of Arts, Physical Education, 1988
THIS IS TEXAS A&M
PLAYING CAREER
OTHER HONORS
1975 & 1976 ... AIAW National Championship, Texas Lutheran
1989 ���������������Garland Sports Hall of Fame
1978-84 ����������United States Women’s National Volleyball Team
1994 ���������������Texas Lutheran College Athletic Hall of Honor
1978 ���������������World Championships
1994 ���������������NAIA Hall of Fame
1979 ���������������Pan American Games
1998-2000 ������Honorary Co-Chair of the Children’s Miracle Network for the Brazos Valley
1980 ���������������U.S. Olympic Team (Boycott)
2002 ���������������USA Volleyball/George L. Fisher “Leader in Volleyball”
1981 ���������������World Cup Competition
2006 ���������������L.V. Berkner High School Hall of Honor
1982 ���������������World Championships, Bronze Medalist
ALL-AMERICANS
1983 ���������������Pan American Games, Silver Medalist 1984 ���������������U.S. Olympic Team, Silver Medalist
1995 ���������������Suzy Wente (Volleyball Magazine, honorable mention)
1987-89 �����������Major League Volleyball, San Jose Golddiggers
1996 ���������������Kristie Smedsrud (Volleyball Magazine, third team) 1997 ���������������Stacy Sykora (AVCA second team; Volleyball Magazine honorable mention) 1998 ���������������S tacy Sykora (AVCA second team)
PLAYING HONORS
1998 ���������������Jenna Moscovic (All-American Freshman Team, Volleyball Magazine)
1976 ���������������Most Valuable Player, National AAU Junior Olympics Championship Tournament
1999 ���������������Amber Woolsey (AVCA first team; Volleyball Magazine second team)
1977 ���������������USVBA Rookie of the Year, National Tournament, Hilo, Hawaii
2000 ���������������Jenna Moscovic (Volleyball Magazine, honorable mention)
1980 ���������������Congressional Gold Medal
2001 ���������������Jenna Moscovic (AVCA first team; Volleyball Magazine third team)
1984 ���������������Silver Medalist, 1984 Olympic Games, Los Angeles, Calif.
2003 ���������������Melissa Munsch (AVCA third team)
1987 ���������������Most Valuable Player, Major League Volleyball 1987-89 ����������Major League Volleyball All-Star and All-Pro Team
2004 ���������������Laura Jones (AVCA second team, Volleyball Magazine honorable mention) Melissa Munsch (AVCA third team)
1989 ���������������Most Valuable Player, Major League Volleyball All-Star Game
2005 ����������������Laura Jones (AVCA first team; Volleyball Magazine first team)
1992 ���������������USVBA Player of the Year, National Tournament, Senior Division Three-time USVBA All-American (1985, 1986, 1992)
T E X A S A & M V O L L E Y B A L L C O A C H I N G S TA F F
THE LAURIE CORBELLI FILE Name: Laurie Flachmeier Corbelli Born: January 28, 1957 in Detroit, Michigan Hometown: Garland, Texas Husband: John Corbelli Children: Rachel (5/9/91) and Russell (6/28/94)
OLYMPIANS
1998 ���������������USA Volleyball/Flo Hyman All-Time Great Player Award
Stacy Sykora, Libero, 2000 Olympic Games, Sydney, Australia Stacy Sykora, Libero, 2004 Olympic Games, Athens, Greece
COACHING CAREER
Stacy Sykora, Libero, 2008 Olympic Games, Beijing, China (Silver Medalist)
MEMBERSHIPS / COMMITTEES
1986-89 �����������Head Coach, University of San Francisco (record 39-71) 1990-92 �����������Head Coach, Santa Clara University (record 61-35)
USA Volleyball Executive Committee, National Player Representative (1991-97)
1993-Present ... Head Coach, Texas A&M University (record 343-158)
USA Volleyball Board of Directors, Player Representative (1990-98) American Volleyball Coaches Association, District VI All-District and Coach of the Year Awards Committee (1993-98)
COACHING HONORS
USA National Team Committee (1997-98)
1987 ���������������West Coast Athletic Conference Women’s Volleyball Coach of the Year
USA National Team Coach Selection Committee (1996)
1991 ���������������West Coast Conference Co-Coach of the Year
AVCA Division I Head Coaches Committee – Big 12 Conference representative (2000, 2005-08)
1992 ���������������West Region Coach of the Year
USA Today/AVCA Division I Coaches Top 25 Voter (2000-02)
1992 ���������������West Coast Conference Coach of the Year 1994 ���������������Southwest Conference Co-Coach of the Year
Rock Prairie Elementary School Parent Teacher Organization, Board of Directors, Public Relations Chair (2002-03)
1995 ���������������District VI Coach of the Year
NCAA Certification Committee on Academic Integrity (2005-06)
1995 ���������������Southwest Conference Coach of the Year
AVCA TV Committee (2005-06)
2000 ���������������Texas A&M Coach of the Year
City of College Station Comprehensive Plan Advisory Committee (2006-08)
When the Corbellis came to A&M in 1993, the twosome took over a program that had never placed higher than a second-place tie in the six-team Southwest Conference, had never won 20 or more games in a season, nor had advanced to the NCAA playoffs in the six years preceding their hiring. In only their first season at the helm of the Aggies, however, the Corbellis turned around a team that had finished in a fourth-place tie in league play with a 3-7 record and 19-17 overall mark the previous year to a 7-3, second-place showing in conference play and a trip to the second round of the NCAA Championships. A&M ended the season with
an impressive 27-8 record, making Laurie the winningest first-year coach in the history of the program. The triumphs have continued to multiply. After ending the 1994 season with a reappearance in the second round of the NCAA tournament and a 19-14 record, A&M began the 1995 campaign with a vengeance by defeating defending national champion and top-ranked Stanford in the second match of the season. At the time, the victory marked only the second time in the history of A&M men’s and women’s athletics that an Aggie team defeated a No. 1-ranked team during the regular season.
2009 AGGIE VOLLEYBALL
3
T E X A S A & M V O L L E Y B A L L C O A C H I N G S TA F F The Aggies finished second in the SWC behind eventual national runner-up Texas with an 8-2 record and appeared in the NCAA tournament for an unprecedented third consecutive season. After advancing to the Sweet Sixteen, A&M finished the season with a 23-7 record and was ranked No. 15 in the final coaches poll, a then all-time high for the A&M volleyball program. The Aggies broke into the national top 10 for the first time in the history of the program in 1996 and held the No. 10 spot for four weeks. They finished third in the inaugural season of the Big 12 Conference with a 15-5 record and ended the season with a 25-8 mark after advancing to the second round of the NCAA tournament for the fourth consecutive year. A&M took another step forward in 1997 as the Aggies won first and second-round matches in the NCAA Championship’s expanded 56-team field. It marked the first time A&M had won two matches in the tournament. Despite dropping a tight five-game battle against sixth-ranked BYU in the East Regional semifinal, the Aggies finished 26-8 and ranked No. 13, another record-high in the season-ending poll. The Corbellis’ 1998 recruiting class was ranked sixth in the nation, and the group promptly played an integral part in another successful season for the Aggies. With three freshmen — Jenna Moscovic, Michelle Cole and Brandi Mount — in the starting lineup, the Aggies snapped No. 3 Nebraska’s 36-match regularseason winning streak and were the only Big 12 team to defeat the league champion and Final Four-bound team that year. The victory against the Huskers helped bolster A&M to a season-ending eightmatch conference winning streak, equaling the longest conference winning streak in school history. The Aggies advanced to the second round of the NCAA tournament and finished with a 21-9 record and ranked 18th in the coaches final Top 25 Poll. In 1999, the Corbellis guided the Aggies to their first NCAA Elite Eight appearance, stunning No. 3 Hawai’i in Honolulu in the round of 16. A&M finished the season 28-6 and ranked an all-time high ninth in the final coaches Top 25 Poll. In addition, senior middle blocker Amber Woolsey became the first Aggie to garner first-team All-America laurels by the AVCA. Another home victory against the higher-ranked Huskers earlier in the ’99 season helped boost the Aggies to their all-time high second-place finish in the Big 12 standings, one win behind threetime champion Nebraska. Furthermore, the Aggies completed the season 16-0 in the friendly confines of G. Rollie White Coliseum, including two home victories in the NCAA tournament, marking the first time an A&M team finished a season undefeated at home with the exception of the 1978 team, which went 4-0. Laurie became the all-time winningest coach in Texas A&M volleyball history on Oct. 18, 2000, posting the 181st victory of her Aggie career as the Aggies defeated rival Texas and posted their first win in Austin since 1979. The Aggies went on to tie for second in the Big 12 behind eventual national-champion Nebraska
4
T E X A S A &M U N I V E R S I T Y
with a 14-6 mark and advanced to the second round of the NCAA tournament despite returning only two starters from A&M’s thenmost celebrated season in the program’s 25-year history. Moscovic earned All-American honorable mention from Volleyball Magazine as A&M set all-time season records and ranked second in the national statistics in both kills and assists per game. The Aggies finished the year ranked 23rd in the final national Top 25 Poll with a 20-9 record. The Corbellis’ 2001 Aggies equaled the most successful season in A&M volleyball history, reaching the NCAA Elite Eight for the second time. The Aggies ranked 11th in the final poll in 2001 after upsetting No. 6 Wisconsin in the regional semifinals and finishing the season with a 26-6 record. Four of the six losses were to Final Four teams, including two setbacks to eventual national champion Stanford. In her final season, Moscovic led the nation in triple-doubles and became only the second Aggie to capture first-team AllAmerican laurels by the AVCA. In addition, she directed the 2001 squad to a No. 2 ranking in the national statistics in both kills and assists per game for the second consecutive season. In the competitive Big 12, Moscovic and the Aggies placed second to Final Four-bound Nebraska for the third consecutive season and tied the school record for league wins with a 16-4 mark.
Munsch was named to the third team. In addition, Munsch was named the Big 12 Co-Defensive Player, a first by an A&M player. A&M made its 13th straight NCAA appearance in 2005 but was eliminated in the first round for the first time in the Corbellis’ 13-year tenure after falling to Northwestern in five games and finishing with a 16-14 record. Jones, who broke more than 30 A&M records in her final season, led the nation with 6.09 kills per game and capped her illustrious career by becoming the third player in A&M history to be named to the AVCA first team. It marked the eighth AVCA All-America honor bestowed to a Corbelli-coached player in nine years. Despite having four freshmen, sometimes five, on the court, A&M began 2006 with a 7-1 record, including a win against Loyola in the Aggies’ home opener on Sept. 8 which gave Laurie her 400th career victory and her 300th win at A&M. The youth-laden Aggies struggled to a 5-15 mark in the extremely competitive Big 12 and finished the season 12-16 overall and missed the NCAA Championships for the first time under the Corbellis’ tenure. The Aggies got off to a promising start in 2007, setting a school record by winning their first 10 matches. A&M finished the regular season 21-10 and was baffled when the Aggies did not receive an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament. The team was even more
CORBELLI’S RECORD Alabama...............................2-0
Drake....................................1-0
VS.
ALL OPPONENTS Pacific...................................0-3
Texas.................................12-24
Alcorn State..........................1-0
Duke.....................................2-1
Loyola-Chicago......................2-0 Loyola-Marymount.............5-10
Pennsylvania.........................1-0
Texas-Arlington.....................7-0
American..............................1-0
Eastern Kentucky..................1-0
Marquette............................1-0
Pepperdine.........................3-12
Texas-Pan American..............1-0
Appalachian State.................1-0
Eastern Washington..............1-0
Maryland..............................2-0
Pittsburgh.............................1-0
Texas-San Antonio................5-0
Arizona.................................0-1
Florida..................................0-3
McNeese State......................2-0
Portland................................7-6
Texas A&M............................0-1
Arkansas-Little Rock..............3-0
Florida State.........................2-0
Michigan...............................2-2
Portland State.......................1-1
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.....1-0
Arkansas State......................1-0
Fresno State..........................2-1
Michigan State......................2-2
Prairie View A&M.................2-0
Texas State..........................13-0
Auburn.................................2-0
George Mason......................1-0
Minnesota............................1-1
Providence............................0-2
Texas Tech...........................25-8
Baylor.................................27-6
Georgia.................................2-2
Mississippi............................1-0
Rice......................................9-1
Toledo...................................1-0
Boise State............................1-0
Georgia Southern..................1-0
Missouri.............................19-7
Saint Louis............................1-0
UCLA.....................................0-2
BYU.......................................3-4
Georgia Tech.........................1-0
Missouri State.......................4-0
St. Mary’s...........................13-4
U.S. International..................1-2
BYU-Hawaii...........................1-1
Gonzaga................................8-6
Montana...............................1-2
Sam Houston State...............5-1
Utah.....................................2-0
California..............................3-6
Hawaii..................................1-5
Montana State......................2-0
Samford................................1-0
Utah State.............................4-0
UC Riverside.........................0-1
Hofstra..................................1-0
Morgan State........................1-0
San Diego............................11-3
Villanova...............................1-0
UC Santa Barbara..................0-3
Houston..............................12-4
Murray State.........................1-0
San Diego State.....................1-1
Virginia.................................1-0
Cal-Poly Pomona...................2-0
Illinois State..........................2-1
Nebraska............................2-24
San Francisco........................6-0
Virginia Tech.........................0-2
Cal-Poly SLO..........................4-2
Iowa.....................................2-0
Nevada-Reno........................4-3
San Francisco State...............2-2
Washington..........................1-0
Cal-State Chico......................1-0
Iowa State...........................23-4
New Mexico..........................1-2
San Jose State.......................1-5
Washington State..................2-2
Cal-State Fullerton................3-1
James Madison.....................1-0
New Mexico State.................0-1
Santa Clara............................5-5
Weber State..........................3-0
Cal-State Los Angeles............1-0
Kansas................................22-4
Nicholls State........................1-0
Siena.....................................1-0
Western Illinois.....................0-1
Cal-State Northridge.............1-2
Kansas State.....................10-16
North Carolina......................3-0
Sonoma State.......................1-0
Western Michigan.................0-1
Cal-State Sacramento............1-3
Kentucky...............................0-1
Northeast Louisiana..............1-0
South Carolina......................2-0
Wichita State........................1-0
Centenary.............................2-0
Lamar...................................3-0
Northern Illinois....................2-0
Southern California...............0-5
William & Mary....................2-0
Clemson................................0-1
Lehigh...................................1-0
Northwestern.......................0-1
Southern Mississippi.............1-0
Winthrop..............................1-0
Cleveland State.....................1-0
Long Beach State..................0-1
Notre Dame..........................1-2
Southwest Missouri State.....3-0
Wisconsin.............................2-2
Colorado.............................19-9
Louisiana-Lafayette...............1-0
Ohio State.............................0-1
Stanford................................1-6
Colorado State......................1-3
Louisiana Tech......................1-0
Oklahoma...........................23-6
Stephen F. Austin..................3-0
Creighton..............................1-1
LSU.......................................4-2
Oral Roberts.........................1-0
Temple..................................1-0
DePaul..................................1-0
Louisville...............................1-0
Oregon State.........................0-1
Tennessee.............................1-1
GO TO JOHN ’ S COMPLETE BIO
T E X A S A & M V O L L E Y B A L L C O A C H I N G S TA F F
In 2002, the Aggies were rebuilding after losing five starters following one of the most successful seasons in the history of the program. Despite the inexperienced lineup, A&M managed to reach the second round of the NCAA tournament for the 10th consecutive year before being eliminated by the nationalchampion Women of Troy. Freshman phenom Laura Jones and sophomore Melissa Munsch led the youth movement as the Aggies went 21-10 overall and 12-8 in the Big 12. The Aggies entered the 2003 season unranked; nonetheless, the Corbellis managed to direct A&M to its third NCAA regional appearance in five years and a No. 16 final ranking. A&M, which was eliminated by eventual national-champion USC for the second consecutive year, finished the season 23-10 overall after tying for third in the Big 12 with a 13-7 mark. In addition, Munsch made her first appearance on the AVCA All-American team as she was selected to the second team. The Aggies became one of only six teams to make a 12th consecutive appearance in the NCAA second round in 2004. A&M ranked No. 20 in the final poll after finishing the year with a 19-9 mark, including a 14-6 record in the Big 12. And for the first time in A&M history, two Aggies were named All-America in the same year as Jones was named to the AVCA’s second team and senior
2009 AGGIE VOLLEYBALL
5
T E X A S A & M V O L L E Y B A L L C O A C H I N G S TA F F stunned to not receive a berth in 2008 after ending the regular season on a six-match winning streak to go 16-14 and tie for fourth place with Iowa State, which reached the NCAA regional finals. Stacy Sykora (1995-98) was the Corbellis’ first player to earn All-America distinction from the AVCA, earning second team honors in both 1997 and 1998. The charismatic Sykora went on to earn the ultimate honor of being named Olympian, becoming the first Aggie to play on an Olympic volleyball. The former A&M outside hitter honored her collegiate coach by donning the No. 5 jersey -- the same number Laurie wore at the ’84 Olympic Games – and was Team USA’s starting libero at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia. Sykora went on to earn “Best Digger” laurels at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece. In 2008, Sykora became A&M’s first-ever varsity athlete in any sport to be a threetime Olympian and won a silver medal in Beijing. The Corbellis have had at least one student-athlete receive All-America recognition in 10 of the last 14 years. Senior setter Suzy Wente was named AllAmerica honorable mention by Volleyball Magazine in 1995 and also captured SWC Player of the Year accolades, a first by an A&M player. Outside hitter Kristie Smedsrud, the 1994 SWC Freshman of the Year, was selected to the 1996 Volleyball Magazine All-America third team as a junior. Sykora also received All-American honorable mention by Volleyball Magazine as a junior in 1997. Woolsey garnered both AVCA and Volleyball Magazine All-America honors in 1999, and Moscovic, the Big 12 Freshman of the Year and a member of Volleyball Magazine’s All-American Freshman team in 1998, earned All-American status from the publication in 2000 and 2001, in addition to receiving AVCA first-team honors in 2001. And with Jones also receiving All-America Volleyball Magazine honorable mention in 2004 and first-team honors in 2005, Aggies have earned a total of 16 All-American awards during the Corbellis’ 16year tenure. In addition, A&M volleyball athletes have received 28 all-region/all-district citations and 26 first-team conference awards under the Corbellis’ direction.
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T E X A S A &M U N I V E R S I T Y
Student-athletes also have been recognized for their accomplishments in the classroom and in the community throughout the Corbellis’ reign. Kim Mitchell earned GTE Academic All-America first-team honors and was the Texas A&M/Bill Erwin Scholar-Athlete of the Year in the 1993-94 academic year. Defensive specialist and medicalschool bound Beth Weynand was named to the Verizon Academic All-American first team in 2001 after being named to the academic All-American third team and receiving the Texas A&M/Bill Erwin Scholar-Athlete of the Year award in the 2000-01 academic year. Senior defensive specialist/libero Rebecca Wynalda, the 2003-04 Texas A&M/Bill Erwin ScholarAthlete of the Year, was a member of the academic All-American third team in 2003. Christi Hahn, who was a member of the 2005 The ESPN Magazine Academic All-America third team as a junior, was a firstteam academic All-American in 2006 and was named the 2006-07 Texas A&M/Bill Erwin ScholarAthlete of the Year. A three-time Gathright Scholar Academic Excellence Award recipient, an honor given annually to the outstanding sophomore, junior and senior of each academic college at Texas A&M, Hahn also was a member of the academic all-district team from 2004-06 and joined a long list of Aggies who have represented A&M on the Academic All-District VI Volleyball Team. A&M student-athletes have received 59 Volleyball Academic All-Big 12 certificates since the conference was formed in 1996. In addition, Aggie Jennifer Wells was the Big 12’s female winner of the 1997 Budget AwardsPlus Sportsmanship Award. Laurie also has collected the hardware and in 2002 received USA Volleyball’s distinguished George L. Fisher “Leader in Volleyball” award, recognizing her for her exceptional endeavors on behalf of the sport. She received SWC Coach of the Year honors in both 1994 and 1995 and was named AVCA District VI Coach of the Year in ‘95. In addition, Laurie was voted the Texas A&M Coach of the Year for 1999-2000 by the Aggie student-athletes. The Corbellis form one of several current husband-wife coaching tandems in NCAA Division I volleyball. They first
United States Women’s National Volleyball team from 1978-84 and was a two-time member of the U.S. Olympic Team. After the boycott of the 1980 Olympic Games in Moscow, Laurie returned to help lead the U.S. team to a silver medal at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles. She also was a member of the National Team that competed in the ‘78 and ‘82 World Championships, the ‘79 and ‘83 Pan American Games and the ‘79 World Cup Competition. In 1987, Laurie played Major League Volleyball for the San Jose Golddiggers and was named the Most Valuable Player in the league’s inaugural season. She also was named MVP of the MLV’s season-ending all-star game in 1989. Laurie has participated in volleyball competitions in more than 25 countries and has served as an instructor in more than 50 national volleyball clinics around the country. In addition, she has served on numerous committees for USA Volleyball and the American Volleyball Coaches Association and also has served as a motivational speaker for numerous organizations. In the spring of 1993, A&M officials were looking for an experienced leader for the Aggie volleyball program, and the Corbellis were seeking to fulfill the one dream that had eluded them -- the chance to coach together once again. In the process, A&M secured two coaches who have achieved feats that dreams are made of, while the Corbellis reached their dream of working together to rouse a program they classified as a sleeping giant. Laurie and John provide similar coaching philosophies to form what they describe as a complimentary partnership that sees eye-to-eye. They also contribute equally impressive backgrounds to A&M. They were successful as a coach-player combo in the Pan American and Olympic Games and as a coaching duo in the Far East. Both have compiled resumes that speak for themselves, and the combination of the two continues to prove victorious for Texas A&M volleyball.
2009 AGGIE VOLLEYBALL
T E X A S A & M V O L L E Y B A L L C O A C H I N G S TA F F
coached together as members of the staff of the 1984 U.S. Women’s National Team that toured the Far East. With John as the head coach and Laurie as the assistant, the team competed in tournaments in Seoul, Hong Kong and Singapore. Before coming to A&M, they earned recognition for being the only husband and wife to serve concurrently as head coaches of Division I volleyball programs. They coached against each other in California, with Laurie at Santa Clara and John at San Jose State. Though Laurie is 1-3 versus her husband in the head-to-head series, she has proven that she is a winner. In her three years at Santa Clara, she posted a 61-35 record and was twice honored as the West Coast Conference Coach of the Year. In 1992, she led Santa Clara to a 21-11 record and collected WCC and West Region Coach of the Year honors as the Broncos won the league title and made their first-ever appearance in the NCAA postseason tournament. In 1991, she was named WCC Co-Coach of the Year after directing the Broncos to a 10-4 secondplace conference finish. Santa Clara went on to earn its first-ever postseason appearance, where the Broncos finished third in the National Invitational Volleyball Championships. Santa Clara ended the season with a 26-11 record, the best finish in school history. Raised in Garland, Texas, the former Laurie Flachmeier first served as a head coach in 1986 at the University of San Francisco. During her f our years at USF, the Lady Dons posted a 39-71 ledger. In 1987, USF finished third in the competitive WCC, and Laurie was named WCC Coach of the Year. While coaching, she also was pursuing her bachelor’s degree in education, which she completed at USF in 1988. Along with the successes she has achieved on the sidelines, Laurie also has tasted success on the court and in 1998 was presented the prestigious Flo Hyman All-Time Great Player Award by USA Volleyball. After playing three years for Texas Lutheran College, Laurie played for the
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