Derek Schroeder - Volleyball Coach - Mercer University Athletics

Derek Schroeder

Title:
Head Coach
Email:
schroeder_da@mercer.edu
Phone:
(478) 301-2268

Derek Schroeder was named Mercer’s head indoor volleyball coach on July 25, 2017. He is the 12th head coach in Mercer indoor volleyball history. As a head coach Schroeder has a 250-179 (.583) career record, including an 81-90 (.474) record at Mercer.

In 2019, his third season with the Mercer Bears, Schroeder recorded his 200^th career win on Sept. 14 against Tennessee State. His 50^th career win as head coach at Mercer came on March 9, 2021, in a sweep of Wofford.

Schroeder led Mercer to back-to-back SoCon regular season conference championships from 2020-21, the first two SoCon regular season titles in program history.

In the 2022 season, the Bears finished 6-10 in conference play in a year in which they had to replace five starters from the 2021 SoCon regular season championship team. Annie Karle was named First Team All-SoCon for the third time in her career. Karle was named SoCon Offensive Player of the Week twice throughout the season. Freshman Lillian Beardsley was named to the SoCon All-Freshman Team.

The Bears won back-to-back SoCon regular season titles in 2020-21. In 2021, Schroeder was named SoCon Coach of the Year after the Bears finished 16-12, 12-4 SoCon. In conference play, Mercer led the SoCon in hitting percentage (.240) and blocks per set (2.66).

Megan Smith was named 2021 SoCon Libero of the Year and Second Team All-SoCon. Annie Karle was named First Team All-SoCon. Rayanne de Oliveira was named First Team All-SoCon after finishing second in the SoCon with a .302 hitting percentage and Jaida Howell was right behind her finishing third in the conference with a .299 hitting percentage.

In the 2021 season, Megan Smith earned one SoCon Defensive Player of the Week honor and Rayanne de Oliveira was twice named SoCon Defensive Player of the Week.

Under Schroeder, Mercer won its first Southern Conference regular season championship in program history in the 2020-21 season, finishing with a 13-3 record in conference play and an overall record of 15-8. Schroeder was named 2020-21 SoCon Coach of the Year.

Annie Karle and Jaida Howell were named First Team All-SoCon. Brittany Major was named Second Team All-SoCon. Annie Karle was named SoCon Offensive Player of the Week on March 9.

Mercer went on a nine-game winning streak and won 13 of its last 15 regular season games to clinch the regular season title. The Bears also won their first conference tournament semifinal match, defeating Western Carolina in five sets to advance to the conference tournament championship match.

Mercer finished top-three in the conference in hitting percentage, opponent hitting percentage, kills, blocks and service aces. Jaida Howell finished second in the SoCon with a .314 hitting percentage and led the conference with 1.11 blocks per set.

The Bears made their second consecutive trip to the SoCon Tournament semifinals in 2019 after making their first ever semifinal appearance in 2018. Freshman Jaida Howell finished sixth in the SoCon with a .302 hitting percentage and was named to the SoCon All-Freshman Team.

In 2018, his second season as head coach, Mercer finished the season 16-13 and 8-8 in conference play. The 16 wins were the most in a season since Mercer joined the Southern Conference in the 2014 season. The Bears earned the fourth seed in the SoCon Tournament and defeated fifth seed Wofford to advance to their first SoCon Tournament semifinals since joining the conference.

Collegiate Coaching Experience

July 2017-Present – Mercer University
- Beach/Indoor Head Coach
2008-15 – Samford University
- Indoor Head Coach
2007-08 – Saint Louis University (Mo.)
- Indoor Assistant Coach
2003-06 – Furman University
- Indoor Assistant Coach

Past Coaching Accolades

Samford University
- All-time winningest coach in program history (169-86, .662%)
- Two NCAA Tournament berths (2011, 2014)
- Two Southern Conference Tournament championships (2011, 2014)
- Four SoCon North Division titles (2008, 2009, 2011, 2012)
- Won 20-plus matches in five different seasons
- Mentored three different SoCon Players of the Year, one SoCon Libero of the Year & one SoCon Freshman of the Year
Saint Louis University (Mo.)
- Helped lead the Billikens to a 23-7 record
Furman University
- Spent four seasons as an assistant on Michelle Young’s staff
- Helped guide the Paladins to a pair of winning seasons, including a 19-11 mark in final year on staff (2006)