MACON, Ga. – Derek Schroeder, who owns 169 career wins at the NCAA Division I level, has been tabbed as Mercer's head indoor and beach volleyball coach, Director of Athletics Jim Cole announced Tuesday morning.
 
Schroeder, a native of Wheatley, Ontario, Canada, becomes the 12th head coach in Mercer indoor volleyball history and the second in Mercer beach volleyball history. He has coached indoor volleyball at three different NCAA Division I institutions, including Samford, where he served as the Bulldogs' head coach from 2008-15 and is the program's all-time wins leader (169-86, .662%).
 
"This is a great day for Mercer volleyball and Mercer University as a whole," Cole said. "Coach Schroeder is a proven winner with experience in the Southern Conference and I cannot wait to see how he takes our indoor and beach volleyball programs to the next level as we aim for conference championships."
 
Schroeder spent eight years at Samford where he guided the Bulldogs to two NCAA Tournament berths and SoCon Tournament titles in 2011 and 2014 while winning 20-plus matches in five seasons. In his first year at the helm for Samford, Schroeder led the Bulldogs to a 28-5 record as they captured their first of four SoCon North Division titles during his tenure.
 
"Thank you to Jim Cole and Sybil Blalock for taking the time to get to know me and provide this opportunity to guide Mercer's volleyball programs," Schroeder said. "I could not say yes fast enough when I received the offer. I am ready to get started and build something special with the Bears."
 
Prior to Samford, Schroeder got his start in college coaching as an assistant on Michelle Young's staff at Furman. His primary responsibilities at Furman from 2003-07 included recruiting, training offensive systems and volleyball operations. Schroeder then served as an assistant at Saint Louis University (Mo.) for the 2007-08 season.
 
Schroeder mentored three different SoCon Players of the Year at Samford in addition to one SoCon Freshman of the Year and one SoCon Libero of the Year. He graduated from the University of Windsor (Ontario, Canada) in 1998 with a bachelor's degree in human kinetics.
 
"We could not be more thrilled to have Derek as the new leader of our volleyball programs," said Deputy Athletics Director Sybil Blalock. "His track record at Samford speaks for itself and we believe he will guide Mercer to a winning tradition."
 
Mercer opens its indoor season at the Gamecock Invitational Friday, Aug. 25 at South Carolina in Columbia, South Carolina. The Bears went 15-14 (7-9 SoCon) last year and return multiple starters, including All-SoCon Second Team selection Morgan MacGilvary and single-season blocks record holder Paige Alsten.
 
Derek Schroeder Coaching Experience