2008 A-State Volleyball Reference Guide

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Head Coach Craig Cummings Craig Cummings is entering his 13th season as head coach of the Red Wolf volleyball program, making him the longest tenured coach in ASU volleyball history. During his 12 seasons at Arkansas State, Cummings has compiled an impressive 224161 record, picking up three Sun Belt Conference Coach of the Year honors along the way. During the 2006 campaign, he became just the third coach in ASU volleyball history to eclipse 200 victories, and last year moved into second place on the ASU all-time wins list. Cummings reached another milestone in 2007 as well when he topped the 300 career victories mark and he now stands at 305-271 through 18 seasons as a head coach. Hampered by injuries throughout the season, Arkansas State finished 12-19 a year ago, including an 8-10 mark in the Sun Belt Conference. Although ASU finished the year below .500, the season did produce several memorable moments. Arkansas State finished the regular season on a high note, winning three straight matches on the road in Louisiana. ASU began the late season surge with a 3-0 win at Louisiana-Monroe, followed by a 3-1 victory at Louisiana-Lafayette. Arkansas State completed the sweep through Louisiana when they defeated New Orleans 3-0 to close out the regular season, earning a berth in the Sun Belt Conference Tournament in the process. The 2007 season also was highlighted by senior middle blocker Robin Aaron being named to the All-Sun Belt Conference team for the third consecutive year, and senior Katie Peil’s ascent to the top of the career assists chart. Peil finished her career with 5,048 assists, becoming the only player in ASU history to top the 5,000-assist mark. During his tenure at Arkansas State, Cummings has guided the Red Wolf program to four Sun Belt Conference regular season championships, and one appearance in the NCAA Volleyball Tournament. His most recent championship came in 2004 when ASU took home the SBC East Division title, posting an 11-3 mark in Sun Belt play, and a 25-8 overall record on the season. In 2004, the then-Lady Indians closed out the regular season by picking up victories in 13 of their last 14 matches on their way to the title. The Tribe also posted an undefeated record at home with a 14-0 mark at the Convocation Center. Also under Cummings' tutelage, outside hitter Giedre Tarnauskaite was named the Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year and setter Katie Peil picked up SBC Freshman of the Year accolades. Cummings' crowning achievement so far was a three-game victory over Arkansas-Little Rock in Little Rock, Ark., on Nov. 21, 1999, that gave him his first SBC Tournament championship and ASU's first NCAA Tournament appearance since 1995. In 1999, Cummings guided the Lady Indians to a 21-11 record on the season. The 21 wins were the most for ASU since the 1999 campaign and returned ASU to the upper echelon in the Sun Belt Conference. ASU won another Sun Belt Conference title in 1999 when the Lady Indians finished with a 28-7 record, including a stellar 14-2 mark in conference action. The Lady Indians finished atop the league standings and went on to win the Sun Belt Conference Tournament title and gain the NCAA Tournament appearance. The 28-win campaign was the highest win total for ASU under Cummings and the most since the 1993 season in which ASU picked up 32 victories. Eight of Cummings' teams have won 20-ormore games-after a 24-win campaign in Cummings' first season in 1996, ASU had a 21-12 record in 1997, a 23-11 record in 1998, a 28-7 mark in 1999, a 20-11 record in 2000, a 21-11 mark in 2003, 2005's 25-8 record and last season’s 21-14 mark. Cummings was named the head volleyball coach at Arkansas State in May of 1996. He is the fifth coach in the program's 29-year history. He had spent the previous six seasons as head coach at his alma mater, Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo, in San Luis Obispo, Calif. As a player, Cummings played three seasons for the Cal Poly men's program from 1978-80. A The Cummings Family Alex, Drew, Craig and Carol

Head Coach

CRAIG CUMMINGS 12 Years at ASU (224-161) 18 Years Overall (305-271)

2008 ASU VOLLEYBALL MEDIA GUIDE

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