Ron Sweet enters his second season as Wofford head volleyball coach, completing his first season at the helm of the program in the fall of 2013. Sweet was hired by the college on January 10, 2013, and was most recently the associate head coach at James Madison University.
In his first season, Sweet led the Terriers back to the Southern Conference Tournament for the first time since 2006. Wofford earned a No. 7 seed with a 13-18 overall record and 7-9 mark in Southern Conference play. The seven SoCon wins were the most for the program since 2005, while the conference record was Wofford’s best since going 9-11 in 2001.
The 2013 Terriers took Iowa to five sets in the season opener, and faced programs such as UC Santa Barbara and Arizona, both of which participated in the NCAA Tournament. After starting the SoCon season 0-3, Wofford won three straight and four out of five, going 7-6 the rest of the way through the conference slate. The Terriers were in nearly every match, suffering eight of their losses in five sets. The last came in the SoCon Tournament, taking No. 2 seed Furman to its limits (27-25, 18-25, 19-25, 25-23, 12-15) on the Paladins’ home court.
Adding to Sweet’s first season, senior Amanda Liguori becoming the school’s new all-time leader in kills. Liguori completed her career with 1,264 to surpass Andrea Duke (2001, 03-04) who previously held the record with 1,237.
At the end of the year, Taylor Baird was named Second Team All-Southern Conference, earning Wofford’s first selection since 2003. Baird and Jessica Graham were named SoCon Offensive and Defensive Player of the Week, respectively, on October 14. It was the first time the Terriers took both honors in the same week, and Wofford’s first player of the week selection since 2010.
“We are excited to have Ron Sweet as our next volleyball coach,” said Wofford Athletic Director Richard Johnson, upon the hire of Sweet in January of 2013. “Ron has been extremely successful in the coaching ranks for the last twelve years, including several National Championships. He is a great fit here at Wofford and will have an immediate impact in our program.”
“I want to thank Richard Johnson, Mark Line and Terri Lewitt for giving me such a great opportunity,” said Sweet. “They have created a fantastic welcoming family atmosphere in the athletic department that gets people excited about Wofford. There is lot of pride at Wofford, and it is a place I am proud to join. I look forward to getting on campus and working with the team.”
Ron Sweet joined the James Madison volleyball staff on March 2, 2010. He was promoted to associate head coach following the 2011 season. During the 2012 season, the Dukes were 13-16 overall and three players received All-CAA honors. In 2011, the team posted a 20-11 record with three players being honored with All-CAA accolades. In his first season the squad was 22-8 overall, the best record in a decade and their first CAA Championship berth since 2007.
Sweet joined the Dukes following six successful seasons as head coach at Kishwaukee College in Malta, Illinois. The Kougars finished fourth nationally in 2009 following a string of three consecutive National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division II national championships from 2006 to 2008.
In seven seasons as head coach at Kishwaukee, Sweet led the Kougars to an overall mark of 321-47 for an impressive .872 winning percentage. KC also placed ninth nationally in 2005, third in 2004, and fifth in 2003.
Sweet was twice honored as the NJCAA Division II National Coach of the Year. He was also Region Coach of the Year six times and Arrowhead Conference Coach of the Year on seven occasions. The American Volleyball Coaches Association named him the Mid-West Region Coach of the Year in 2006 and 2008. Sweet has coached 14 First Team All-Americans, 12 First Team Academic All-Americans, and seven AVCA First Team All-Americans. In 2008, Kishwaukee was the only non-Division I school with its recruiting class listed in the top 30 nationally by Prepvolleyball.com.
Sweet began as an assistant coach at Kishwaukee in 2001, aiding the Kougars to a pair of national championships in 2001 and 2002 with an overall record of 103-5.
In addition to his time at Kishwaukee, Sweet was the head coach of Club Fusion, leading 17s and 18s elite teams and offering private volleyball lessons. In 2008, he was named Coach of the Tournament at the Prepvolleyball.com Tournament. During his tenure from 1999 to 2009, he coached several teams to top 10 finishes in the open division and assisted clubs in 2002 and 2008 to Open National Championships.
As a player, Sweet captured a gold medal in the 2003 US Open National Championships with Team Paul Mitchell. He also captured silver medals with the squad in 2004 and 2005.
Sweet earned his bachelor of science in business management from the University of Phoenix in 2009. He and his wife, Jenni, have one son, Trey. Sweet and his family reside in Spartanburg.
