Sunahara Adds Byron to Volleyball Staff
MORGANTOWN, W. Va. (May 8, 2015) – West Virginia University volleyball coach Reed Sunahara has bolstered his staff with the addition of assistant coach Sean Byron, who joins the Mountaineers this May from the Ohio State University men’s volleyball program. Sunahara announced Byron’s hiring on Friday.
“We are excited to have Sean on staff,” said Sunahara. “He brings in a wealth of knowledge and gives as a different perspective, coming from the men’s game. He comes to WVU with high recommendations, and I’m excited for him to start. He will be working with our setters and our offense, in addition to other responsibilities.”
Byron will join assistant coach Rebecca Rudnick and Kevin Carroll, who moves into an operations assistant role, on staff.
“I’m thrilled for this opportunity and would like to thank Director of Athletics Shane Lyons and Coach Sunahara for making it possible,” said Byron. “I’m also thankful to Coach Pete Hanson for the chance to work at Ohio State. I believe this is a great opportunity and look forward to working with the Mountaineers.”
Byron served as the Buckeyes’ offensive and recruiting coordinator during his eight seasons in Columbus and helped guide the squad to five MIVA regular season titles. OSU also won four MIVA tournament titles and the 2011 National Championship during his tenure, with six AVCA All-Americans. A total of 27 players earned All-MIVA accolades, while four earned MIVA Player of the Year honors.
Prior to joining the staff at Ohio State, Byron spent eight years at Rutgers University-Newark, where he was head men’s and women’s volleyball coach. His women’s squad advanced to both the ECAC and NCAA tournaments, while the men’s program qualified for the EIVA tournament and consistently ranked in the top-15 of the nation. Before heading to Newark, Byron was the head men’s and women’s coach at East Stroudsburg from June of 1998 to December of 1999. He also spent two years as the head men’s coach at Springfield College, guiding the team to the Molten Division III National Championship in 1997 while also serving as an assistant professor of physical education.
On the national level, Byron has been involved with USA Volleyball for more than 20 years. He has been an assistant coach on the Boys Under-21 U.S. National team on multiple occasions and was the head coach of the under-19 squad in the summers of 2002, 2008 and 2009, helping the team win gold medals at the North and Central American tournaments and a bronze medal at the 2002 NORCECA World Championship Qualifier. Byron was an assistant coach on the U.S. National B-Team (2011) and served as both the head coach and an assistant coach for the U.S.A. High Performance Team (2000-01) in addition to coaching at the 2005 World University Games.
Byron earned a Bachelor of Science in Physical Education from Springfield College in 1993, playing outside hitter for the Pride, and went on to earn a Master of Education in Physical Education from the school in 1998. He is an instructor for National Certification courses for aspiring club, high school and college coaches in U.S.A. Volleyball’s Coaching Accreditation Program and boasts several published works on skills.
Byron and his wife, Julie, are parents to daughters, Grace and Calleigh.
Follow @WVUSports and @WVUVolleyball on Twitter
MORGANTOWN, W. Va. (May 8, 2015) – West Virginia University volleyball coach Reed Sunahara has bolstered his staff with the addition of assistant coach Sean Byron, who joins the Mountaineers this May from the Ohio State University men’s volleyball program. Sunahara announced Byron’s hiring on Friday.
“We are excited to have Sean on staff,” said Sunahara. “He brings in a wealth of knowledge and gives as a different perspective, coming from the men’s game. He comes to WVU with high recommendations, and I’m excited for him to start. He will be working with our setters and our offense, in addition to other responsibilities.”
Byron will join assistant coach Rebecca Rudnick and Kevin Carroll, who moves into an operations assistant role, on staff.
“I’m thrilled for this opportunity and would like to thank Director of Athletics Shane Lyons and Coach Sunahara for making it possible,” said Byron. “I’m also thankful to Coach Pete Hanson for the chance to work at Ohio State. I believe this is a great opportunity and look forward to working with the Mountaineers.”
Byron served as the Buckeyes’ offensive and recruiting coordinator during his eight seasons in Columbus and helped guide the squad to five MIVA regular season titles. OSU also won four MIVA tournament titles and the 2011 National Championship during his tenure, with six AVCA All-Americans. A total of 27 players earned All-MIVA accolades, while four earned MIVA Player of the Year honors.
Prior to joining the staff at Ohio State, Byron spent eight years at Rutgers University-Newark, where he was head men’s and women’s volleyball coach. His women’s squad advanced to both the ECAC and NCAA tournaments, while the men’s program qualified for the EIVA tournament and consistently ranked in the top-15 of the nation. Before heading to Newark, Byron was the head men’s and women’s coach at East Stroudsburg from June of 1998 to December of 1999. He also spent two years as the head men’s coach at Springfield College, guiding the team to the Molten Division III National Championship in 1997 while also serving as an assistant professor of physical education.
On the national level, Byron has been involved with USA Volleyball for more than 20 years. He has been an assistant coach on the Boys Under-21 U.S. National team on multiple occasions and was the head coach of the under-19 squad in the summers of 2002, 2008 and 2009, helping the team win gold medals at the North and Central American tournaments and a bronze medal at the 2002 NORCECA World Championship Qualifier. Byron was an assistant coach on the U.S. National B-Team (2011) and served as both the head coach and an assistant coach for the U.S.A. High Performance Team (2000-01) in addition to coaching at the 2005 World University Games.
Byron earned a Bachelor of Science in Physical Education from Springfield College in 1993, playing outside hitter for the Pride, and went on to earn a Master of Education in Physical Education from the school in 1998. He is an instructor for National Certification courses for aspiring club, high school and college coaches in U.S.A. Volleyball’s Coaching Accreditation Program and boasts several published works on skills.
Byron and his wife, Julie, are parents to daughters, Grace and Calleigh.
Follow @WVUSports and @WVUVolleyball on Twitter
