THIS IS WEST TEXAS A&M
Volleyball A long-standing tradition of success and excellence. Played in front of the largest crowds…
On the largest state in all of NCAA Division II…
Volleyball – at its finest.
Record-breaking performances A winning tradition A history of post-season competition
Tough on the road, Nearly unbeatable at home This is West Texas A&M Volleyball Where winners become CHAMPIONS. Have you got what it takes to be a Champion?
A CHAMPIONSHIP TRADITION The West Texas A&M Volleyball team has claimed FIVE straight Lone Star Conference regular-season titles and FIVE straight LSC Tournament Championships. The Lady Buffs have made SIX consecutive NCAA Playoff appearances and have been to the postseason NINE out of the last 10 seasons. Since 2006, West Texas A&M has accumulated 170 overall victories, which totals 55 more wins than its next closest LSC opponent.
Over the last two and a half decades, West Texas A&M has won 17 LSC Championships and has made 21 NCAA Playoff appearances. The Lady Buffs have been a part of 11 Elite Eight Championships, have made four National Championship appearances and has won three NCAA Division II National Titles.
WHERE WINNING IS A TRADITION West Texas A&M has had 24 consecutive winning seasons and has won more than 80 percent of their matches in that time, making the West Texas A&M Lady Buff Volleyball team one of the most successful programs ever in all of Division II.
NATIONAL RECOGNITION
West Texas A&M is no stranger to the AVCA National Top-25 Poll. The Lady Buffs have been ranked inside the Top-25 a total of 221 times, which is the fifth-most in NCAA Division II history and has earned the nation’s #1 ranking a total of 25 times.
ARE YOU ALL-AMERICAN? West Texas A&M has produced 17 different All-Americans and two National Player of the Year selections.
83
– That’s the number of consecutive victories over a Lone Star Conference opponent the Lady Buffs will carry-over into the next season. It is now the longest streak ever in NCAA Division II history since breaking the previous record of 77-straight wins that West Texas A&M set in 2003.
JASON SKOCH HEAD COACH
In just two years at the helm of the West Texas A&M Volleyball program, Jason Skoch continues to keep the Lady Buffs among the nation’s elite. In his first season with the Lady Buffs, Skoch led the squad to its fourth-straight Lone Star Conference regular-season title, fourth-straight LSC Tournament Championship and fifth-consecutive NCAA postseason appearance. He guided the team to the school’s 11th Elite Eight appearance after winning the South Central Regional Championship and then took the squad to school’s fourth National Championship match appearance. The Lady Buffs were the National Runners-Up in 2009 after boasting an impressive 39-4 record. To many, 2010 could have been “a rebuilding year,” but not to Skoch. Even after losing three AVCA All-Americans to graduation this past season, Skoch guided the Lady Buffs to a fifth-consecutive regular-season title and won the LSC Tournament Championship for a fifth-straight year as well. WT went undefeated for a fifth consecutive year and the team broke the NCAA Division II record for consecutive wins over a conference opponent under his direction. He then led the team to its sixth-consecutive NCAA Playoff appearance, earning the No. 5 seed in the South Central Regional Championship. In two seasons with the Lady Buffs, Skoch has compiled an overall record of 65-13 and is a perfect 27-0 against LSC opponents in the regular-season. He is 6-0 in his two LSC Championship appearances and 5-2 in the NCAA postseason. He was named LSC Coach of the Year for the first time of his career in 2010.
Before taking over at West Texas A&M, Skoch served as head coach at Truman State. While with the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association-member, he guided the Bulldogs to four-consecutive top-10 rankings in the AVCA final poll. The Bulldogs were ranked fourth in both 2005 and 2008, finished sixth in 2006 and were eighth in the final 2007 rankings. While at Truman State, he compiled a 13722 won-loss record (.861 percent), made four consecutive trips to the NCAA Tournament, developed 11 All-American student-athletes, as well as two MIAA Most Valuable Players. The Bulldogs were MIAA regular-season and tournament champions in both 2006 and 2007, and spent a portion of the 2005 campaign ranked #1 in the national polls. Additionally, the Bulldogs have been ranked in the AVCA Division II Top 25 Poll every week during his tenure as head coach. Skoch and his wife, Karen, reside in Canyon, Texas. The couple has one son, Jay.
SARAH CARTHEL ASSISTANT COACH
Sarah (Butler) Carthel, who just recently concluded her fifth season as an assistant coach, is no stranger to Lady Buff Volleyball. Carthel is one of the most accomplished players to ever take the court for the Lady Buffs and enjoyed one of the most outstanding careers in NCAA Division II volleyball history as a student-athlete at West Texas A&M from 1997-1999. Carthel was a two-time NCAA Division II Player of the Year for the Lady Buffs, earning the honor as a sophomore in 1997 and as a senior in 1999. A three-time AVCA all-America selection, Carthel was also a two-time academic all-America pick. She was a three-time all-Region selection and Honda Award finalist for the top NCAA Division II Female Athlete in both 1997 and 1999. In August 2005, she was voted to the NCAA Division II All-Time Volleyball team, one of only six players to earn the honor. She was inducted into the WTAMU Hall of Champions in 2007 and in the summer of 2008 she was selected for induction into the Lone Star Conference’s Hall of Honor. She is married to West Texas A&M football defensive coordinator Colby Carthel and the couple resides in Canyon.
DANA HANSELMANN GRADUATE ASSISTANT COACH
Dana Hanselmann just finished her second season as the WTAMU Volleyball graduate assistant coach. She came to WT following a fouryear career at Truman State University, where she played for head coach Jason Skoch. She earned her Bachelor’s degree in exercise science with an emphasis in sports management and a minor in business from Truman State in 2009. Hanselmann played middle blocker and outside hitter for the Bulldogs. She was named to the MIAA all-Conference honorable mention team and earned academic recognition as well, receiving the MIAA Commissioners Academic honor roll from 2005-2008. She was also selected to the ESPN-The Magazine college division academic all-district third team. A Sleepy Hollow, Ill. native, Hanselmann was a three-year varsity starter for her high school team at Dundee-Crown High. She currently holds the school record for single season blocks and kills. She also played middle blocker for the Sky High Volleyball Club for six years.
SARAH RAMEY STRENGTH & CONDITIONING
Sarah Ramey recently concluded her fourth season as the head strength & conditioning coach at WTAMU. Ramey works with WT student-athletes in all sports in the areas of strength training and physical conditioning, the benefits of which can be seen in the numerous honors and team championships which WT has garnered during her tenure at WT, as well as by her being recognized as the 2009 recipient of the Samson Equipment Strength & Conditioning Coach of the Year Award, as given by American Football Monthly. From 2003-06 she served as an assistant strength and condition coach at the University of Colorado. In that capacity, she worked with the school’s football, volleyball, women’s soccer and alpine skiing squads. In addition, Ramey also is a registered yoga instructor and taught yoga classes at Colorado. During her collegiate days, Ramey was a three-year volleyball letter winner at Wichita State where she played middle blocker and right side hitter for the Shockers. She earned the Missouri Valley Academic Excellence Award in 2000 and maintained a 3.83 GPA while graduating with a degree in Exercise Science in May of 2002.
WELCOME TO “THE BOX” Not many collegiate volleyball teams have a gym they can call their own. At West Texas A&M, you can. WTAMU Fieldhouse – better known as “The Box” – was renovated to become one of a select few “volleyballonly” arenas in NCAA Division II. Seating just over 2,000, “The Box” provides fans an opportunity to virtually sit on the court and cheer on the perennial championship-contending Lady Buff volleyball team. The Lady Buffs continue to rank among the nation’s best in attendance each and every year. Since 2001, the Lady Buffs have finished the season ranked 10th or better in home attendance. The Lady Buffs averaged just under 800 fans per regular-season home contest in 2009, finishing the year second in the nation in attendance. Two of the top-three attended matches at “The Box” happened back in 2009 as 1,623 fans gathered to watch the Lady Buffs take on Grand Valley State on August 28, 2009. More than 1,550 fans were on hand to witness the Lady Buffs win their fourth-consecutive LSC Tournament Championship on Nov. 14, 2009, when WT downed Abilene Christian in four sets during the title match. West Texas A&M has recorded three of the top-five home winning streaks in all of NCAA Division II. A 57-match home win streak that began on Sept. 6, 1996 and ran through Oct. 23, 1999, became the third longest streak among Division II teams, while the school’s other streaks of 55 and 50-straight wins rank as the 4th and 5th longest.
WT Athletics Home of Champions Men’s Basketball
26 Championship banners. 24-consecutive winning seasons. 11 NCAA tournament appearances. Six LSC Tournament titles. Four LSC South Division championships.
Women’s Basketball
31 winning seasons since 1975. 18 NCAA Tournament appearances. 15 LSC Regular Season titles. Nine LSC Tournament Championships. Eight LSC South Division titles. Four trips to the NCAA Elite Eight.
Football
Six consecutive winning seasons. Five NCAA playoff appearances over the past six seasons. Four LSC Championships.
Men’s Soccer
A Conference power. A Regional power. A National power. Five NCAA Tournament appearances. Four Conference titles.
Women’s Soccer
13 LSC championship appearances. Nine LSC championship finals appearances. Five LSC Championship titles. One Elite Eight appearance.
Softball
In just five seasons under head coach Kevin Blaskowski, the program has averaged over 25 wins a season with a 2010 LSC South Division Championship and program’s first ever NCAA postseason appearance.
Volleyball
A National Power. 21 NCAA Regional appearances. 17 Lone Star Conference regular-season championships. 16 LSC Tournament titles. 11 Elite Eight appearances. Four National Championship matches. Three National Championships.
IT’S MORE THAN ‘GOING OFF TO COLLEGE.”
It’s discovering what you’re made of… Explore Your Interests.
A Great Value at a Great University
West Texas A&M University offers more than 60 undergraduate degree programs and 43 graduate programs ranging from accounting to education, music therapy, sociology and wildlife biology. The small-town atmosphere at WTAMU is a terrific environment to discover your interests and find what you’re passionate about learning and accomplishing.
West Texas A&M costs about 35 percent less than the average of other State universities. In cold, hard cash, this means a total savings of $3,000 - $9,000 per year. During the academic year, WTAMU will award $33 million in financial aid and $2.5 million in scholarships to students.
WTAMU provides a major university experience without the big college hassles and expense. WTAMU, a member of The Texas A&M University System, boasts an enrollment of more than 7,700 students from 35 states and 30 countries. The University honors its 100-year history, but continues to grow and reflects an energy for the future. WTAMU is a student-driven University that offers the ultimate college experience through a perfect balance of liberal arts and career-oriented programs combined with various campus activities and numerous community involvement opportunities to ensure future success. It’s a place where students come to grow, learn and lead. The historic campus dates back to the early 1900s, but offers a modern appeal with more than $95 million in capital improvements during the past 10 years, including the new $21.8 million Buffalo Sports Park. The new facility is home to the largest grouping of synthetic athletic fields in the United States, with competition facilities for baseball, softball, soccer and track & field, practice fields for football and soccer and recreational fields as well as basketball and tennis courts, a jogging track and grand lawn.
DISCOVER THE BUFF IN YOU Where you want to go. Who you want to be.
Undergraduate Fields of Study
Go BUFF Wild! Get Involved.
College of Agriculture, Science and Engineering • Agribusiness • Agricultural Business and Economics • Agriculture • Animal Science • Equine Industry and Business • Plant, Soil and Environmental Science • Agricultural Media and Communication • Computer Science • Engineering Technology • Mechanical Engineering • Pre-Engineering • Biology • Biotechnology • Environmental Science • Geology • Medical Technology • Pre-Dentistry • Pre-Medicine • Pre-Pharmacy • Pre-Physical Therapy • Pre-Veterinary Medicine • Wildlife Biology • Chemistry • Mathematics • Physics • College of Business • Accounting • Economics • Finance • Information and Decision Management • General Business • Management • Marketing • College of Education and Social Sciences • All-Level Education • Elementary Education • Secondary Education • Criminal Justice • Political Science • Applied Arts and Sciences/Emergency Management Administration• Pre-Law Studies • Public Administration • Psychology • Social Sciences • Social Work • Sociology • Sybil B. Harrington College of Fine Arts and Humanities • Art • Dance • Graphic Design • Musical Theatre • Studio Art • Theatre • Mass Communication — Broadcasting • Mass Communication — Print Media • Mass Communication — Public Relations • Speech Communication • English • Spanish • Geography • History • Music • Music Composition • Music Therapy • Music Performance • Applied Arts and Sciences • General Studies • College of Nursing and Health Sciences • Communication Disorders • Nursing • Sports and Exercise Sciences • Athletic Training
You’ll have interests outside of athletics, be it politics, religion, community service, a profession or most any other area of interest you can think of, WTAMU has a place for you to get involved. With more than 100 campus organizations, countless traditions and activities, you’ll find yourself right in the middle of the action. You could be a Communications Buff, a Business Buff, an Engineering Buff . . . or maybe you don’t yet know what kind of buff you’ll be. No worries. The first-year experience at West Texas A&M gives you lots of opportunities to find your interests, talents and abilities. Trained counselors and fascinating classes help you narrow down the options and find your passions. Stop stressing. We’ll help you Discover the BUFF in You.
West Texas A&M University Dept. of Intercollegiate Athletics WTAMU Box 60049 Canyon, Texas 79016 806-651-4400 www.gobuffsgo.com