Dave Markland
Head Volleyball Coach & Associate ADAlma Mater: Appalachian State, 1977
E-mail: marklandd@lr.edu
Office Phone: (828) 328-7215
Entering his seventh year as Lenoir-Rhyne’s Head Volleyball Coach, Dave Markland has elevated the program to new heights as the Bears now contend for the South Atlantic Conference Championship on a regular basis.
Markland also serves as the Assistant Director of Intercollegiate Athletics and oversees L-R’s spring sports and splits duties with Assistant Athletic Director and Head Softball Coach Shena Hollar when it comes to Lenoir-Rhyne University’s winter sports.
Markland has compiled a 123-87 record as Bear mentor since being hired in the spring of 2003 and, last fall, became the winningest coach in Lenoir-Rhyne Volleyball Program history.
Markland has also led L-R to its only two South Atlantic Conference Regular Season Championships (2004 and 2006) and its lone berth in the NCAA Division II Playoffs in 2004.
Last year, injuries crippled the team and, despite a late push, finished 15-19 (6-10 in SAC play).
In 2007, the Bears finished with an 18-16 overall record and a 6-8 mark in league play, placing them fifth. Senior Catherine Fulton and junior Katie Novacek were named to the All-South Atlantic Conference First Team while Caroline Albertelli received league all-freshman team honors.
Three years ago, Markland received his second South Atlantic Conference Coach of the Year award as Lenoir-Rhyne captured its second regular season championship in three years with a record of 25-13 (12-2 SAC). Five players received All-SAC honors including Abby Smith, who was selected to the All-SAC First Team, and Kathryn Phillips, who was named an All-SAC Second-Teamer and a CoSIDA/ESPN The Magazine Academic All-American.
In 2005, the Bears started slow with a youthful group of players but put together 10-straight wins down the stretch to finish the season strong. Lenoir-Rhyne grabbed fourth-place in the league with a 22-12 overall mark and an 8-6 SAC record.
In 2004, Markland guided the team to two firsts: a SAC Regular Season Title and a berth in the NCAA Division II Playoffs. The Bears finished 27-8 overall and 12-2 in league play. Their victory total was the second-highest in school single-season history.
Markland, who won the SAC Coach-of-the-Year honors for his efforts that year, saw two of his players named to the all-league first team in addition to Lauren McLelland being named the SAC Freshman of the Year.
The rise began in his first year in 2003 when the squad improved from a 12-21 mark and 2-12 record in SAC play in 2002 to 16-19 and 5-9, respectively, despite fielding a young team.
Markland arrived in Hickory after serving as the head coach for Davie County High School from 2000 until 2002. His teams from the Mocksville, N.C., school won two Central Piedmont 4A Conference Championships and earned a NCHSAA 4A playoff berth in 2002.
Markland also served as the head coach at West Caldwell High School in Lenoir, N.C. for the 1999 season.
A 1977 graduate of Appalachian State University with a degree in health and physical education, Markland has 10 years of coaching experience at the Division I level including seven years as Head Coach for Appalachian State (1992-98) and three as an assistant for the University of North Carolina (1989-91).
During his tenure at ASU, Markland’s squad won three Southern Conference Championships, two Southern Conference Tournament Championships and twice qualified for the NCAA Tournament.
Markland, who guided the Mountaineers to a 152-87 overall mark, also earned Southern Conference Coach-of-the-Year honors twice.
All told, Markland has compiled a 275-174 record as a collegiate head coach.
As an athlete, Coach Markland distinguished himself as a three-time All-American with the Men’s Major Slowpitch League of the Amateur Softball Association. While at Appalachian State as an undergraduate, he competed in track and field, setting school and Southern Conference records in javelin. A four-year letterman, Markland earned Team MVP Honors his junior and senior seasons and still holds the school javelin record.
Markland received his master’s degree from Appalachian State in 1979.
Markland’s wife, Cheryl, is a physical education teacher at Clyde Campbell Elementary in Hickory. The couple has one daughter (Ashley) and one son (Bradley).
