Head Coach Joe Getzin
Joe Getzin was introduced as the Winona State volleyball coach on February 12, 2014, becoming a Warrior after spending the previous 12 seasons as the head volleyball coach at NCAA Division I Ole Miss.
In 2021, Getzin led Winona State to one of the best seasons ever in Warrior volleyball history. WSU racked up a 28-5 overall record and earned runner up status in both the NSIC regular season and the NSIC Volleyball Tournament. The Warriors' success in one of the toughest leagues in the country was rewarded with an at-large bid to the NCAA Division II tournament. Winona State continued their success in the classroom as well, earning their 16th consecutive American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) team academic award.
The 2019 Winona State campaign saw Getzin lead his team to a 21-8 overall record and a 13-7 mark in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NISC) action. The Warriors advanced to the 2019 NSIC Tournament, eventually falling to Concordia - St. Paul, the eventual tournament champion.
Following the 2019 season, Getzin saw Warrior standout Megan Flom earn American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) All-American honors, one of just three WSU volleyball players ever named to the AVCA All-American list while compete in the NCAA ranks. Flom was also named to the 2020-21 CoSIDA Academic All-American team in volleyball, the first CoSIDA volleyball honoree in WSU history.
In 2018, Getzin notched his 100th win at Winona State, becoming the fastest coach in program history to reach the milestone. The Warriors finished 13-15 (10-10 NSIC) with a young roster that notched three conference wins over teams ranked or receiving votes in the AVCA Top 25. It marked the fifth straight season under Getzin that WSU went at least .500 in the ultra-competitive NSIC – a feat that had not been accomplished in more than two consecutive years prior to his arrival.
The Warriors posted their third-straight 20-win season in 2017, an accomplishment that had only been achieved over one over span in program history (1986-88). Winona State went 21-8 (15-5 NSIC) with an undefeated regular season road record. Despite being ranked within the AVCA Top 25 all year, the Warriors' hopes of reaching the NCAA Tournament for the second straight season was denied as Winona State fell just outside the regional bubble. Seniors McKenna Larsen and Danielle Rampart each earned AVCA All-American honorable mention nods.
The 2016 campaign was historic for Winona State as the Warriors reached the NCAA Division II Regional for the first time in program history. WSU went 27-6 overall (the most wins since 1990) and 16-4 in the highly-competitive NSIC. Junior setter McKenna Larsen became the team's first-ever NCAA DII All-American, earning honorable mention recognition from the AVCA.
In his second year the Warriors continued to show improvement, reaching the NSIC Championship game. The team won 20 matches in 2015, a feat which had not been accomplished since 1993, and were ranked 22nd in the final AVCA Poll. During the season the Warriors had four wins over top-ten ranked opponents on the year.
Upon completing his first season, Getzin helped lead the Warriors to one of their most successful years in program history. The Warriors finished 2014 with a 19-8 record and a 14-6 record in NSIC play, finishing fifth in the conference. Getzin's .703 win percentage in his first season at WSU marks the second-best single season win percentage in program history since LaVonne Fiereck led WSU to a 28-10 (.737) record in 1990.
Getzin also helped mold outside hitter Danielle Rampart into a great player in her first year in the program, helping her earn all-NSIC First Team accolades as well as earn AVCA Central Region Freshman of the Year honors.
As a program, the Warriors have performed just as remarkably in the classroom under Getzin, having earned the AVCA Team Academic Award each year he has been head coach.
Before coming to WSU, Getzin spent 12 seasons as the head coach at Ole Miss, taking a program stuck at the bottom of the SEC and leading it to three appearances in the NCAA Tournament. An outstanding recruiter and in-game coach, Getzin was named the SEC Coach of the Year in both 2006 and 2007.
Getzin also oversaw a team that was extremely successful in the classroom. During his 12 seasons on the Ole Miss bench, 59 volleyball players were named to the SEC Academic Honor Roll and 15 were Freshman Academic Honor Roll selections. His team captured the 2006 Chancellor’s Cup, given each year to the Ole Miss athletic program with the highest grade point average.
Prior to earning the top job at Ole Miss, Getzin spent two seasons as the top assistant at South Carolina. Getzin helped the Gamecocks go 42-12 during the 2000-01 seasons, with the program advancing to the NCAA Tournament both years.
Getzin spent the 2000 season as the head coach at the University of Portland after serving for three years as the head coach at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Prescott, Ariz. Starting the program at Embry-Riddle from scratch, Getzin led the team into the NAIA national rankings in just the team’s second year. He was also the director of the Yavapai Junior Volleyball Club from 1995-99, overseeing more than 100 players age 10-18.
He spent the 1995-98 seasons as an assistant at South Carolina and was also an assistant at the University of Arizona from 1988-91, helping lead the Wildcats to the NCAA Tournament in 1989 and 1990. Prior to coaching at Arizona, Getzin was the coach of the Southern Arizona junior team.
Getzin began his coaching career at Saint Francis High School in Wheaton, Ill. from 1986-87 while also coaching the Chicago Breeze, a women’s Major League Volleyball team. He also served as the Western Zonal Coordinator for the 1989 U.S. Olympic Festival.
Getzin earned his bachelor’s degree in Physical Education from George Williams College in Downers Grove, Ill. in 1986. Getzin and his wife Andrea have two children, Sara Rose and Erin Elizabeth.
