Chris Catanach Earns Third Straight South Region Coach of the Year Award

LEXINGTON, Ky. - After winning the Sunshine State Conference and the NCAA South Regional, University of Tampa volleyball coach Chris Catanach has been honored as the AVCA South Region Coach of the Year. This marks the 11th regional coach of the year award for Catanach, and his third straight.

In his 24th year at UT, Catanach guided the Spartans their third-consecutive Sunshine State Conference Championship in 2007, marking the 17th time that Tampa has won at least a share of the conference title, which is an SSC record for volleyball. After capturing the 2006 NCAA Division II national championship, the Spartans have been ranked number4 one a total of nine times on CSTV/AVCA Division II Top 25 Coaches Poll this season, coming in at two for the remaining four weeks. The Spartans won the South Region of the NCAA Division II Tournament, and will make their 10th trek to the national quarterfinals under their veteran mentor, who is seeking national title number two.

The Spartans will square off with host Washburn University on Thursday, November 29 in Topeka, Kans. Catanach is now 749-145 through his storied career at Tampa.