Marquette vice president and director of athletics Mike Broeker announced Sunday afternoon that Tom Mendoza will be the sixth head coach of Marquette volleyball.
“We are thrilled to welcome Tom Mendoza to Marquette University,” Broeker said in a press release. “Tom brings an exceptional track record of success, most recently at the Power Four level, where he has consistently demonstrated the ability to build competitive, high-performing teams. His commitment to fostering strong relationships with his student-athletes, alongside his deep understanding of the role athletics plays on a Catholic, Jesuit campus, makes him an ideal fit for Marquette.”
Mendoza comes to Marquette after seven seasons at South Carolina. The Buffalo Grove, Illinois native guided the Gamecocks to four tournament appearances. Prior to South Carolina, Mendoza led High Point to back-to-back Big South Conference championships in his only two seasons at the school in 2017 and 2018.
“I want to thank Marquette President Dr. Kimo Ah Yun, Mike Broeker and (MU Executive Associate Athletic Director) Danielle Josetti for their work in this process and entrusting me to lead the volleyball program,” Mendoza said. “I am honored to lead the program into a new era in which we can build on the success and history of those who came before us and work to reach new heights.
“As college athletics becomes increasingly transactional, I believe the values-based personalized college experience that Marquette offers will set us apart in recruiting and developing leaders and high achieving student-athletes. I look forward to the next few days of getting to know the current and future Golden Eagles and talking through what I can do to help them reach their potential both individually and as a team.”
During his first two seasons at South Carolina, Mendoza led USC to the program’s first back-to-back 20-win seasons in nearly two decades and first NCAA appearance in 16 years.
Mendoza posted an overall record of 106-90 during his seven seasons in Columbia and was 47-18 in two seasons at High Point. He earned AVCA Southeast Region Coach of the Year in 2017 during his final season with the Panthers after a perfect 16-0 Big South regular season performance. HPU earned a rare at-large bid to the NCAA tournament that year thanks to a resume bolstered by early season non-conference victories over Oklahoma, Georgia and Ohio.
Mendoza is no stranger to Big East volleyball either, as he served as associate head coach and recruiting coordinator for Kirsten Berthal Booth at Creighton, serving in the roles for the final three years of his six seasons with the Bluejays (2010-15). He was part of five NCAA tournament teams and conference championships at Creighton and was in Omaha for the Bluejays’ first three seasons as members of the Big East Conference.
“I have fond memories of my time in the Big East, and I believe the values-based education that Marquette offers attracts and develops high achieving student-athletes and leaders,” Mendoza said. “I know Marquette can be successful on a national level and compete for Big East Championships on a yearly basis.”
Mendoza grew up just under 70 miles from Marquette’s campus, was a three-year letter winner and 2004 NAIA All-American setter at Newman University. He spent his final college season at Lewis University, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in management information systems in 2007.
Marquette is coming off its 14th consecutive 20-win season. The Golden Eagles went 25-9 en route to advancing to their third Sweet 16 appearance in program history. MU has also competed in the last 13 full-field NCAA tournaments and its five wins in tournament play over the last three seasons are a program record.
The announcement comes just 13 days after the program announced that head coach Ryan Theis was leaving after 11 seasons at the helm for Florida. It was subsequently announced three days later on Feb. 20th that assistant coaches Abby Gilleland and Ryan Walthall would be following Theis to Gainesville.
This story was written by Matthew Baltz. He can be reached at matthew.baltz@marquette.edu or on Twitter/X @MatthewBaltzMU.
