Tyler Hildebrand Returns To Long Beach State As The Sixth Head Coach Of The Women’s Volleyball Program
12/19/2021 3:35:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
A former player and coach at the Beach, Hildebrand most recently helped lead Nebraska Women’s Volleyball to the 2021 National Championship Match as the Associate Head Coach of the Huskers.
LONG BEACH, Calif. – Executive Director of Athletics Andy Fee has announced that Tyler Hildebrand will be returning to his Alma Mater to lead the Women's Volleyball program at Long Beach State. A three-time First Team All-American at Long Beach State, Hildebrand has developed into a tremendously respected and well-rounded coach with experience coaching both women and men at the collegiate, international and professional levels.
"My family and I are honored and humbled to be coming back to lead the women's volleyball program at my Alma Mater," said Hildbrand. "The love I have for the university, Long Beach State volleyball and the entire Long Beach community greatly influenced my decision to return to the Beach and is a dream come true. My wife Kristin and I would sincerely like to thank Andy Fee and Jane Close Conoley for their confidence in me. The way they support our women's volleyball program is unmatched in the Big West and we feel very fortunate to be able to work with them."
Hildebrand spent three full seasons on the staff at Nebraska over the course of five years, reaching the Elite Eight in all three campaigns. In 2017 during his first season at Nebraska, the Huskers would win the NCAA Championship behind All-Americans Annika Albrecht and Mikaela Foecke. Responsible for the Nebraska defense in that season, the Huskers led the Big Ten in opponent hitting percentage at .154. Returning to the squad in 2020, the Huskers made the Elite Eight in the COVID-19 impacted spring season.
This year, recently promoted to Associate Head Coach, Hildebrand helped the 10th seeded Huskers on a deep run to the National Championship match, where Nebraska fell in five sets in a hard-fought battle with Wisconsin.
During that period, Hildebrand also spent two years as a team consultant while he went through his second Olympic cycle as the Director of Coaching for the USA Volleyball Beach National Team. In that role, he was responsible for identifying and recruiting athletes to join the Beach National team as well as working with the four Beach teams that represented the United States at the Tokyo Olympic Games.
Hildebrand had previously gone to the 2016 Rio Olympics as a coach while concurrently working at Long Beach State. Hildebrand at the time was coaching Jake Gibb and Casey Patterson, but has also worked with April Ross and Jen Kessy, April Ross and Kerri Walsh Jennings and Emily Day and Summer Ross on the professional circuit.
"I couldn't be more thrilled with the outcome of our coaching search," said Andy Fee, LBSU Executive Director of Athletics. "Tyler Hildebrand is an elite coach who has achieved success at the highest levels of collegiate and Olympic volleyball. Fundamentally, he is an extraordinary teacher of the game and is committed to helping student-athletes reach their full potential in all aspects of their collegiate experience. I am excited to watch him implement his impressive style of coaching here at the Beach."
Hildebrand made his name both coaching and as a player at Long Beach State though, and has a deep history with the university. Coming to the Beach as a star setter, Hildebrand would start for four years and is still the program's career leader in assists. A three-time First Team All-American, he was also the AVCA Newcomer of the Year as a freshman, and helped the 2004 team reach the NCAA Championship Match, earning All-Tournament honors.
After his collegiate career, Hildebrand played professionally on the Men's AVP Tour for two years, and then moving on to play Internationally, Hidlebrand would routinely earn a callup to play for the USA Men's National Team from 2006 to 2012, winning four Pan American Cup championships over that period.
While continuing his playing career, Hildebrand returned to the bench for the first time in 2008 as a Volunteer Assistant Coach for Long Beach State under Alan Knipe, helping the program win the MPSF Championship and make the program's seventh NCAA Tournament appearance in his first season.
Joining the staff full-time after his playing retirement in 2013, Hildebrand played a large part in building the current success of the Beach Men's Volleyball program. Building from a 24-8 overall record in his first season, the Beach would make their return to the NCAA Tournament in 2016, as TJ DeFalco was named the AVCA Newcomer of the Year, just as Hildebrand was.
One year later in 2017, Long Beach State again reached the Final Four and finished the season ranked No. 3 in the nation as DeFalco was named the AVCA Player of the Year and setter Josh Tuaniga was named a first-team All-American under Hildebrand's direct tutelage. Hildebrand himself was honored as the AVCA Assistant Coach of the Year for his role in setting the stage for LBSU to claim back-to-back National Championships in the next two seasons despite his imminent departure to join Nebraska.
By coming back from Nebraska to Long Beach State, Hildebrand moves between a pair of the programs with the most tradition and success in NCAA Division I Women's Volleyball.
Only Stanford, Penn State and Nebraska have more than Long Beach State's three NCAA Division I championships, and Long Beach State ranks 9th all-time in Division I victories. Only six programs have been #1 in the country more times than Long Beach State, and the Beach boasts six National Players of the Year behind only Stanford and Nebraska. That list includes three of the NCAA's greatest women's players of all-time, Tara Cross-Battle, Danielle Scott and Misty May-Treanor.
Long Beach State won its final six matches of the season in 2021, and has a solid base to build from with the return of first-team All-Big West selections Kashauna Williams and Katie Kennedy.
"My family and I are honored and humbled to be coming back to lead the women's volleyball program at my Alma Mater," said Hildbrand. "The love I have for the university, Long Beach State volleyball and the entire Long Beach community greatly influenced my decision to return to the Beach and is a dream come true. My wife Kristin and I would sincerely like to thank Andy Fee and Jane Close Conoley for their confidence in me. The way they support our women's volleyball program is unmatched in the Big West and we feel very fortunate to be able to work with them."
Hildebrand spent three full seasons on the staff at Nebraska over the course of five years, reaching the Elite Eight in all three campaigns. In 2017 during his first season at Nebraska, the Huskers would win the NCAA Championship behind All-Americans Annika Albrecht and Mikaela Foecke. Responsible for the Nebraska defense in that season, the Huskers led the Big Ten in opponent hitting percentage at .154. Returning to the squad in 2020, the Huskers made the Elite Eight in the COVID-19 impacted spring season.
This year, recently promoted to Associate Head Coach, Hildebrand helped the 10th seeded Huskers on a deep run to the National Championship match, where Nebraska fell in five sets in a hard-fought battle with Wisconsin.
During that period, Hildebrand also spent two years as a team consultant while he went through his second Olympic cycle as the Director of Coaching for the USA Volleyball Beach National Team. In that role, he was responsible for identifying and recruiting athletes to join the Beach National team as well as working with the four Beach teams that represented the United States at the Tokyo Olympic Games.
Hildebrand had previously gone to the 2016 Rio Olympics as a coach while concurrently working at Long Beach State. Hildebrand at the time was coaching Jake Gibb and Casey Patterson, but has also worked with April Ross and Jen Kessy, April Ross and Kerri Walsh Jennings and Emily Day and Summer Ross on the professional circuit.
"I couldn't be more thrilled with the outcome of our coaching search," said Andy Fee, LBSU Executive Director of Athletics. "Tyler Hildebrand is an elite coach who has achieved success at the highest levels of collegiate and Olympic volleyball. Fundamentally, he is an extraordinary teacher of the game and is committed to helping student-athletes reach their full potential in all aspects of their collegiate experience. I am excited to watch him implement his impressive style of coaching here at the Beach."
Hildebrand made his name both coaching and as a player at Long Beach State though, and has a deep history with the university. Coming to the Beach as a star setter, Hildebrand would start for four years and is still the program's career leader in assists. A three-time First Team All-American, he was also the AVCA Newcomer of the Year as a freshman, and helped the 2004 team reach the NCAA Championship Match, earning All-Tournament honors.
After his collegiate career, Hildebrand played professionally on the Men's AVP Tour for two years, and then moving on to play Internationally, Hidlebrand would routinely earn a callup to play for the USA Men's National Team from 2006 to 2012, winning four Pan American Cup championships over that period.
While continuing his playing career, Hildebrand returned to the bench for the first time in 2008 as a Volunteer Assistant Coach for Long Beach State under Alan Knipe, helping the program win the MPSF Championship and make the program's seventh NCAA Tournament appearance in his first season.
Joining the staff full-time after his playing retirement in 2013, Hildebrand played a large part in building the current success of the Beach Men's Volleyball program. Building from a 24-8 overall record in his first season, the Beach would make their return to the NCAA Tournament in 2016, as TJ DeFalco was named the AVCA Newcomer of the Year, just as Hildebrand was.
One year later in 2017, Long Beach State again reached the Final Four and finished the season ranked No. 3 in the nation as DeFalco was named the AVCA Player of the Year and setter Josh Tuaniga was named a first-team All-American under Hildebrand's direct tutelage. Hildebrand himself was honored as the AVCA Assistant Coach of the Year for his role in setting the stage for LBSU to claim back-to-back National Championships in the next two seasons despite his imminent departure to join Nebraska.
By coming back from Nebraska to Long Beach State, Hildebrand moves between a pair of the programs with the most tradition and success in NCAA Division I Women's Volleyball.
Only Stanford, Penn State and Nebraska have more than Long Beach State's three NCAA Division I championships, and Long Beach State ranks 9th all-time in Division I victories. Only six programs have been #1 in the country more times than Long Beach State, and the Beach boasts six National Players of the Year behind only Stanford and Nebraska. That list includes three of the NCAA's greatest women's players of all-time, Tara Cross-Battle, Danielle Scott and Misty May-Treanor.
Long Beach State won its final six matches of the season in 2021, and has a solid base to build from with the return of first-team All-Big West selections Kashauna Williams and Katie Kennedy.
Players Mentioned
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