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San Jose State Spartans women's volleyball
Founded	1974
University	San Jose State University
Athletic director	Jeff Konya
Head coach	Todd Kress (2nd season)
Conference	MW
Location	San Jose, California
Home arena	Spartan Gym, Yoshihiro Uchida Hall (capacity: ~1,000)
Colors	Gold, white, and blue
AIAW/NCAA Tournament semifinal
1984
AIAW/NCAA Regional Final
1984
AIAW/NCAA regional semifinal
1982, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987
AIAW/NCAA Tournament appearance
1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1998, 2000, 2001

The San Jose State Spartans women's volleyball team represents San Jose State University in NCAA Division I college volleyball as a member of the Mountain West Conference. The program began in 1974. Since 2014, it also includes women's beach volleyball, played in the spring semester in the Southland Conference. Men's volleyball is a non-varsity sport at the university.

History

The Spartans had a volleyball team as early as 1971. The program was officially organized in 1974, with Jane Ward as the first head coach; she was also head volleyball coach at Cabrillo College. Under her the Spartans topped their conference every year from 1974 to 1978 (the Northern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, then the Northern California Athletic Conference) and finished seventh in the NCAA Division I tournament in 1978. Sheila Silvaggio was a first team All-American in 1978.

After a single season in 1980 with Marti Brugler as head coach, the Spartans hired Dick Montgomery, formerly a men's volleyball coach at USC and Long Beach State, under whom the team topped the conference (the Northern Pacific Athletic Conference) in 1984 and 1985, went to the NCAA tournament every year, and in 1984 reached the Final Four, its highest ever national result. In September 1986, one poll ranked the team No. 1 in the nation. As of 2023, Montgomery's 191–99 record over 9 seasons gives him the highest win percentage in the history of the program, .659; he was inducted into the Spartans Hall of Fame in 2000. During Montgomery's tenure, the Spartans had two first team All-Americans: Teri DeBusk in 1985 and Lisa Ice in 1986. (Ice was a second team All-American in 1985 and is the only San Jose State athlete to win an NCAA Top Six Award, for 1986.)

After two years under John Corbelli, Craig Choate became head coach in 1993. Over 14 years, he amassed a 244–191 win–loss record (.561 win percentage), to become the program's winningest coach. In 1994, the Spartans placed second at the National Invitational Volleyball Championship. Choate was succeeded by Oscar Crespo, who retired in 2013, the Spartans' first year in the Mountain West Conference, succeeded by Jolene Shepardson. Beach volleyball was added as a spring term sport in 2014, and was coached by Shepardson's husband, Aaron Shepardson. After Shepardson's resignation in early 2020, she was succeeded by Trent Kersten; after Kersten's resignation, Todd Kress became head coach in early 2023.

2024 season

In September 2024, soon after the start of the fall volleyball season, Brooke Slusser, a co-captain of the Spartans volleyball team, joined a lawsuit brought against the NCAA by the Independent Council on Women's Sports for permitting transgender athletes to play women's sports, publicly revealing that the Spartans volleyball team included a trans woman. The player, who played as a girl in high school and club volleyball, was in her final year of eligibility in 2024, having been recruited by Kersten and joined the Spartans in 2022 after a new state law barred her from continuing to play for her former college. In late November, Slusser, an assistant coach, and 10 former and current Mountain West Conference players filed suit against San Jose State, the Mountain West Conference, and others, seeking an injunction on grounds of sex discrimination; the case was rejected by a judge and an appeal was denied by the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals.

Starting with non-conference opponent the Southern Utah Thunderbirds on September 14, five teams forfeited games against San Jose, some more than once; the Spartans finished the season with a 14–7 record and after Boise State declined to play them in the semifinal, advanced on a bye to the conference final, where they were defeated by the Colorado State Rams. The team's season was a topic of national discussion, including Donald Trump endorsing a claim in the lawsuit against the NCAA that the player hit dangerously hard. The assistant coach was suspended after filing a Title IX complaint against San Jose State and giving what the university said was inaccurate information in an interview with Quillette. Kress said the players and coaching staff had received "appalling, hateful messages". In December, 7 team members entered the NCAA transfer portal.

NCAA Division I women's volleyball tournament results

Coaches

• 1974–79 Jane Ward
• 1980 Marti Brugler
• 1981–89 Dick Montgomery
• 1990–92 John Corbelli
• 1993–2006 Craig Choate
• 2007–13 Oscar Crespo
• 2014–19 Jolene Shepardson
• 2020–22 Trent Kersten
• 2023– Todd Kress

Conferences

• 1974–76: Northern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
• 1977–81: Northern California Athletic Conference
• 1982–85: Northern Pacific Athletic Conference
• 1986–95: Big West Conference (renamed in 1988 from Pacific Coast Athletic Association)
• 1996–2012: Western Athletic Conference
• 2013– : Mountain West Conference

Notable players

• Savanah Leaf

Notes

1. Many news outlets chose not to name the player, who has not publicly self-identified as trans, for example:
   * Baron, Ethan (November 18, 2024). "New lawsuit explicitly targets San Jose State over transgender volleyball firestorm". The Mercury News. San Jose. This news organization is not naming the player who Slusser and others have identified as transgender, as the player has not confirmed this.
   * Ostler, Scott (November 20, 2024). "At center of trans hysteria at SJSU, a great volleyball match breaks out". San Francisco Chronicle. her transgender teammate, whom The Chronicle is not naming as she has not spoken publicly about her identity.

References

1. "Yosh Uchida Hall/Spartan Gym". San Jose State Athletics. San Jose State University. Retrieved December 31, 2024.
2. "San Jose State Athletics Branding Style Guide" (PDF). December 14, 2022. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
3. "Men's Volleyball". San Jose State University Club Sports. San Jose State University. Retrieved January 1, 2025.
4. "SSC Sports Bill: Cagers Open Play". Santa Rosa Press Democrat. December 3, 1971. p. 19 – via newspapers.com.
5. ^ "San José State Volleyball 2023" (PDF). San Jose State University. December 1, 2023. p. 46.
6. ^ Jag, Julie (September 11, 2018) . "First-Class Citizens: 10 to be inducted into Cabrillo College's inaugural Hall of Fame class". Santa Cruz Sentinel.
7. Grimes, Greg (September 28, 1979). "Volleyballers host Invitational" (PDF). Spartan Daily. p. 4 – via CORE.
8. ^ "San Jose State Volleyball 2023", p. 8.
9. Pang, Andrew (March 19, 2021). "The common trait of successful San Jose State coaching hires". 247Sports (commentary).
10. ^ Nagel, Josh (June 12, 1989). "Cabrillo announces two hires; others to be named next week". Santa Cruz Sentinel. p. 16 – via Newspapers.com.
11. "San José State Volleyball 2023", p. 35.
12. "SJS volleyball beats Stanford". The Peninsula Times Tribune. September 18, 1986. p. 195 – via Newspapers.com.
13. ^ "San José State Volleyball 2023", p. 39.
14. "Spartans Sports Hall of Fame: 2000 Inductees". San Jose State Spartans. August 3, 2018.
15. "Top Six award winners to be honored by '87 Convention" (PDF). The NCAA News. January 1, 1987. pp. 1, 3.
16. "Spartans Looking For Treats & Wins This Week". San Jose State Spartans. October 29, 2019.
17. "Choate named new NAU volleyball coach". Arizona Daily Sun. April 1, 2008. p. 11 – via newspapers.com.
18. "Oscar Crespo Announces Retirement". San Jose State Spartans. December 12, 2013.
19. "Women's Beach Volleyball 2014". San Jose State Spartans. Retrieved December 27, 2024.
20. "Sand Volleyball Splits with South Bay Rivals San Jose State and Santa Clara". University of San Francisco Dons. April 9, 2014.
21. Lupetti, Taylor (March 25, 2018). "Volleyball head coach Jolene Shepardson signs four-year contract". The Spear SJSU.
22. Zajic, Richy (January 9, 2020). "Head coach Jolene Shepardson leaves SJSU, heads back to alma mater". The Spear SJSU.
23. Pang, Andrew (August 25, 2022). "San Jose State volleyball to begin quest for second straight winning season". 247 Sports.
24. Pang, Andrew (January 11, 2023). "Former Florida State, Fairfield head coach hired to lead San Jose State volleyball". 247 Sports.
25. ^ Barnes, Katie (November 26, 2024). "Inside San Jose State's polarizing volleyball season". ESPN. According to this source, a post on Reduxx and circulation of a video by Riley Gaines preceded the deposition in the lawsuit.
26. ^ Henson, Steve (December 2, 2024). "Season ends for transgender player, San José State volleyball team". Los Angeles Times.
27. Allday, Erin (September 28, 2024). "Second school forfeits volleyball match to San Jose State in apparent protest against NCAA rules". San Francisco Chronicle.
28. ^ Mandel, Stewart (November 14, 2024). "Volleyball players, coach sue San Jose State, Mountain West for allowing transgender athlete". The Athletic, The New York Times.
29. Avila, Alejandro (November 13, 2024) . "SJSU Volleyball Coach Rips His Predecessor Who Recruited Trans Player Blaire Fleming". OutKick.
30. ^ Macur, Juliet (November 28, 2024). "How a Women's College Volleyball Team Became the Center of the Transgender Athlete Debate". The New York Times. Archived from the original on December 1, 2024.
31. ^ Ingemi, Marisa (December 18, 2024). "SJSU women's volleyball has 7 players enter transfer portal after tumultuous year". San Francisco Chronicle.
32. Navarro, Natalia V. (November 26, 2024). "Anti-Trans Suit Seeking to Ban San José State Volleyball Player Is Denied on Appeal". KQED news.
33. Egelko, Bob; Ingemi, Marisa (November 26, 2024). "SJSU cleared for tournament after appeals court denies injunction over trans player". San Francisco Chronicle.
34. "A timeline of the San Jose State women's volleyball season marked by repeated forfeits". Associated Press. November 29, 2024.
35. Barnes, Katie (November 30, 2024). "San José St. ousted by Colorado St. in MWC volleyball final". ESPN.
36. Ingemi, Marisa (October 17, 2024). "Trump claim against SJSU player refuted after he pledges to ban trans athletes from women's sports". San Francisco Chronicle.
37. Henson, Steve (October 17, 2024). "Trump, pointing to San Jose State volleyball player, vows to ban transgender athletes". Los Angeles Times.
38. Nowels, Michael (November 4, 2024). "San Jose State assistant volleyball coach away from team amid transgender controversy". The Mercury News.
39. Ingemi, Marisa (November 16, 2024). "Mountain West clears SJSU in claims against transgender volleyball player, source says". San Francisco Chronicle.

External links

• Media related to San José State Spartans women's volleyball at Wikimedia Commons
• Official website

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• San Jose State Spartans women's volleyball