Megan Valentine, Director of Athletics at Hilbert College, welcomed Bret Stothart back to the collegiate coaching profession after announcing his appointment as the Hawks’ newest women’s volleyball head coach August 2, 2019.
“Bret quickly rose to the top of our candidate pool. His accolades as a former NCAA Division III men’s collegiate volleyball student-athlete and his experiences coaching at the Division III level are impressive. He has cultivated winning programs and successful student-athletes. As a former athletics administrator in the NEWMAC at Wellesley College, I had the opportunity to work with Springfield College and know that Springfield is synonymous with quality and excellence. I’m looking forward to working with Bret and having our women’s volleyball student-athletes back on campus for pre-season soon!”
He is a proven winner with a .629 career winning percentage at two different Division III institutions, multiple conference championships, two coach of the year honors and numerous program records.
"Joining the Hawks athletic family is very exciting and I am very thankful to Megan Valentine for offering me the opportunity to lead the volleyball program to greater heights," Stothart said. "I look forward to working with these strong young women and helping them achieve their goals through continuous improvement on the court, in the classroom and in life."
Stothart accepted his first head coaching position at Roger Williams University in August 2005, and in six seasons, his teams compiled a 124-74 record with a .626 winning percentage. He was named the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) Coach of the Year in 2010 and led the Hawks to consecutive NCAA Division III Tournament appearances in 2009 and 2010. He coached multiple CCC All-Conference athletes highlighted by the Player of the Year, the Libero of the Year, two Rookies of the Year and two Scholar-Athletes of the Year.
He left Roger Williams to become the sixth women’s volleyball head coach at Western New England in March 2011. He guided the Golden Bears to an overall record of 98-57 (28-12 CCC) and his .632 winning percentage continues to be the best in the program’s 26 year history.
He inherited a 10-20 team upon his arrival at WNE and, after just one season, he lifted the Golden Bears to 15-15. His teams continued to improve, posting consecutive 25-win showings in 2012 and 2013 and captured back-to-back Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) New England Championships. He was named the 2012 CCC Coach of the Year after leading the program to its first-ever ECAC postseason title.
During Stothart’s five-year tenure at WNE, 21 Golden Bears earned All-Conference recognition, highlighted by two-time American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Honorable Mention All-American Grace Kucharski. Kucharski also became the program's first-ever CoSIDA Academic All-American with her selection in 2014.
Prior to his Division III head coaching experiences, the Emmaus, Pa. native served as a volunteer women’s volleyball coach and an athletic department media relations graduate assistant at Division I Niagara University while pursuing his master’s degree (2003-2005).
Over the course of his 11-year head coaching career, he served on the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Regional All-American Selection Committee as well as the AVCA Division III National Head Coaches Committee, in addition to the NCAA Regional Rankings Committee.
Since his move to Buffalo, N.Y. in 2017, Stothart has served as the Club Manager for the Delaware Soccer Club overseeing all day-to-day operations, promotions, registrations, scheduling and communications for the club while supporting over 1,500 participants annually. He also was a head coach in the Niagara Frontier Volleyball Club, leading the club’s top 16U team to a 2017 Regional Finals appearance and qualifying for the American Division of the Girls Junior National Championships.
A 1998 graduate of Springfield College, Stothart earned his bachelor's degree in sport management and enjoyed a standout four-year volleyball career. After leading the Pride to the Division III National Championship in 1997, he was selected as the Volleyball Magazine Division III National Player of the Year. In addition, Stothart was Springfield's Most Valuable Player in 1997 and 1998, and the school's Senior Male Athlete of the Year. He also excelled in the classroom, where he was a three-time GTE/CoSIDA Academic All-American from 1996-98. Stothart went on to earn his master of business administration degree from Niagara University in 2005.
