Contact Coach Opperman: opperman@duq.edu

Steve Opperman came to Duquesne in 1998 promising to take the volleyball program to new heights. In his nine seasons at the helm of the Dukes, he has become the school's all-time leader in victories, been named Atlantic 10 Co-Coach of the Year two times and taken the Red & Blue to the A-10 Championship.

Over his tenure, the energetic coach has pledged the future success of the program by broadening his recruiting efforts to obtain the top players from around the country. Since he became Duquesne's 13th head coach, he has upgraded the overall level of the Dukes' competition.

Injuries plagued the Dukes in 2006, producing a 4-9 mark in Atlantic 10 play to finish fourth in the West division. However, three student-athletes received A-10 honors in senior Amanda Haeg and junior Jenni Gross' honorable mention selections. Freshman Chelsea Tillotson was chosen for the All-Rookie team. Haeg and Gross were named as Academic All-Conference picks.

Although the Dukes went 15-13 in 2005, they finished 5-8 in the Atlantic 10. Three student-athletes garnered A-10 laurels led by senior Diana Wuebker's second team All-Conference selection. She was joined by honorable mention honorees senior Monica Tinsley and sophomore Kristin Garnett. Wuebker was named an Academic All-Conference pick and was named to the CoSIDA District 2 All-Academic first team.

In 2004, the Dukes went 15-16 overall, but their 7-7 conference record was good for fourth overall in the A-10 and gave the program their first berth in the A-10 tournament in 10 seasons. The Red & Blue collected five A-10 post-season awards as junior middle hitter Wuebker was named to the All-Conference team while freshman setter Garnett was selected to the All-Rookie squad. Joining them was senior outside hitter Erin Trageser, who along with Wuebker, was named to the All-Academic Team. Opperman won his second A-10 Co-Coach of the Year honor as well as his 200th career victory in the season-opener against Georgia State.

The Red & Blue posted a 13-17 overall record in 2003 and went 6-8 in the Atlantic 10 to finish sixth in the Conference standings. Three Dukes were selected for All-Atlantic 10 commendations as Sarah Morrow and Wuebker were named to the All-Conference team and Avery Dunn was named to the All-Rookie squad. Morrow was also named an Academic All-Conference pick.

The Dukes went 18-12 overall in 2002, the most wins for the program since 1996. They concluded the season with their second-best finish ever tying for fourth with a 7-7 A-10 record. The Dukes narrowly missed qualifying for the four-team Conference championship due to a tiebreaker loss to Xavier. Individually, Diana Wuebker was named to the All-Rookie team while Sarah Morrow was chosen as the A-10 Academic Student-Athlete of the year.

Opperman guided Duquesne to a 16-10 record in 2001, the most successful season on the Bluff since the 1996 squad went 18-13. Duquesne posted an 8-8 conference record to finish the year tied for fifth place in the A-10 standings. Opperman was recognized as the A-10's Co-Coach of the Year while senior Sherene Lemonias was named a first team All-Conference selection.

The 2000 season saw Duquesne posted a 15-16 overall mark, which included a 4-12 showing in league action. The Dukes saw two freshman standouts lauded to the Atlantic 10 All-Rookie team in setter Sarah Brown and middle hitter Sarah Morrow.

In 1999, DU began the season 5-0 start before finishing with a 10-22 mark. The team's lone senior, Anita Ball, earned All-Atlantic 10 honors.

In his first year with the Dukes, Opperman faced a difficult schedule with an inherited a young squad that included six freshmen. The team opened the season strong with five consecutive wins before youth and lack of depth took its toll as the Dukes finished 8-20.

Opperman, who is in his 17th season as a head coach at the collegiate level, brought a bevy of knowledge and success with him from Wright State University. In seven seasons, he compiled a 119-116 record.

In his first year at Wright State, Opperman led the Raiders to a birth in the National Invitation Volleyball Championship after taking his team to the North Star Conference championship game and posting a 22-17 record. In 1993, Opperman's Raiders returned to the National Invitation Volleyball Championship after WSU made it to the Midwestern Collegiate Conference championship and set a school record for conference wins with 14. Opperman left Wright State second on the school's all-time victory list. He earned his 100th victory on Sept. 6, 1996 when the Raiders defeated Western Illinois at the Eastern Illinois Invitational.

The New Bremen, Ohio native started his collegiate coaching career in 1989 as an assistant coach at the University of Dayton. The following season, he took the assistant coaching position at Wright State for one year before assuming the role of head coach in 1991.

In his 16 seasons as a head coach, Opperman has had seven of his players earn first team all-conference honors and six freshmen named to the Atlantic 10 All-Rookie Team. In addition, he has coached five second-team all-conference performers, a conference newcomer of the year, two league all-tournament selections and eight academic all-conference honorees.

Opperman graduated from The Ohio State University in 1987 with a bachelor's degree in marketing. On the court, he was an outside hitter with the Buckeyes for the 1983-84 season leading them to a 28-11 record. He holds memberships in the American Volleyball Coaches and United States Volleyball Associations. Opperman was a voting member of the CSTV/AVCA Top 25 poll from 1999 until 2006. He served as the Atlantic 10 representative to the AVCA Head Coaches Committee from 2000-2005. In 1996, he was a panel speaker at the Final Four Volleyball Convention.

The 43-year-old Opperman resides in Pittsburgh.