Springfield, Ohio — After leading the Wittenberg Tigers to their first NCAA Division III volleyball championship, Head Coach Paco Labrador has been named 2011 National Coach of the Year by the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA).

Labrador capped his ninth season patrolling the Wittenberg sideline with a dominating national title run as the Tigers dropped just one set in six NCAA Division III Tournament matches, including wins over five nationally ranked opponents. Wittenberg put together a 37-3 overall record in 2011 en route to the university's fifth NCAA Championship, in addition to three football poll titles earned in the 1960s.

"It is a great feeling and truly humbling to be honored by my peers," Labrador said. "This award is a team achievement, and I am so proud of my assistant coaches and the student-athletes who worked so hard to reach the ultimate goal in 2011."

A 1995 graduate of Hiram College, Labrador has compiled a 296-41 record at Wittenberg, making him the program's leader in coaching wins and winning percentage. He entered the 2011 season ranked second among active NCAA Division III coaches with an .872 winning percentage – which he subsequently improved to .878 by the end of the campaign.

Along the way in 2011, Wittenberg won its 17th North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) regular season and tournament championships, dropping just one set while winning the combined 18 matches. The Tigers, who have won eight NCAC regular season and eight NCAC Tournament titles in Labrador's nine years at the helm, will carry a 27-match NCAC regular season win streak (31 straight, including NCAC Tournament matches) into the 2012 season.

Wittenberg has qualified for the NCAA Division III Tournament in each of Labrador's nine seasons while winning at least 24 matches each year. The Tigers have reached the regional championship match in seven of his nine seasons and the national semifinals four times as Labrador has compiled a national tournament record of 24-8.

In 2011, Labrador earned his fourth NCAC Coach of the Year award to go along with NCAA Division III Great Lakes Coach of the Year honors in 2004 and 2007. Under his tutelage, 12 different players have earned a total of 18 All-America awards, including 2011 honorees Kimmie Dyer, class of 2012 from Copley, Ohio, Christina Gilene, class of 2013 from Milford, Ohio, and Katie Sumner, class of 2012 from Dublin, Ohio.

Written By: Ryan Maurer

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