SAN ANGELO – Terri McColloch looks back on the 2010 volleyball season as one of accomplishments and milestones.
Her Midland High Lady Bulldogs won a District 3-5A Championship, advanced to the area round of the playoffs and saw seven players recognized as all-district performers. On a personal note, McColloch won her 500th game as a head coach and was named the district's Coach of the Year.
So, what could make 2011 even more memorable?
There's a possibility it will be her final season on the sidelines.
McColloch, a 1981 Angelo State University graduate with a degree in physical education, has been coaching high school volleyball for 30 years – the last 20 as a head coach. She started her head coaching career with a three year stint at Alpine where she led her teams to the regional tournament each season. The last 17 years have all been spent at Midland High where she has taken her record to 507-220.
“Right now I would say that 600 is not a goal,” said McColloch, who is also the girl's athletic coordinator at Midland High and a seven time District 3-5A Coach of the Year selection. “This will be my 31st year to coach and I would probably have to coach three more years to reach 600. My oldest son and his wife (AJ and Jessica) are expecting twins this summer, so I am thinking about retiring so that I can spend time with my grandbabies. My youngest son, Blake, plays football at Texas State and I want to be able to go to all of his games the fall of 2012 and 2013 when they will be competing in the Western Athletic Conference. Those are two big reasons that I am thinking about retiring.”
McColloch, whose husband, David, graduated with a business administration degree from ASU in 1982 and is now the Assistant Superintendent of Finance and Technology for the Greenwood school district, transferred to Angelo State after playing basketball at Odessa Junior College. She did not play basketball or volleyball for the Belles, but has taken the lessons she learned in the Physical Education department to prepare herself for a successful career in coaching and teaching.
“I think that I learned that hard work, discipline and being responsible would help me to succeed,” she said. “I say this because I made a point to attend class and do the work. I think I got my first job over other applicants because my college professors and the head of the PE department gave me such a good recommendation. One thing they said about me was that I could be counted on. I still live by those traits.”
A Jal, New Mexico native, McColloch also has earned a master's degree from Sul Ross State University that is displayed on her resume. Growing up very competitive and loving sports, coupled with the support of her high school coaches, established the coaching career path at an early age. She said she is proudest of the positive influence she has been able to have on students throughout the years and of her team's consistency.
McColloch has coached five district MVP's, five Best Defensive Players, five Best Hitters and three Best Setters of the district, six Texas Girls Coaches Association All-Star players, 13 Texas State Coaches Association All-State players, and six Texas Sports Writer Association All-State first team picks.
When Midland High beat Abilene Cooper, 25-22, 25-18, 25-11,
for her 500th victory, the Lady Bulldog volleyball community came together to show its support for the Angelo State graduate who had just accomplished something very few coaches even dream of.
“Crossing the 500-game milestone was a special moment,” she said. “My booster club and team made it a very special night. They gave me roses, a decorated ball with the number 500, my players signatures, and the team we beat and the score, a jar full of purple and gold M & M's with 500th win printed all over them and all of the players put on a 500th win T-shirt that they had printed up. One of the most special parts of the presentation was having several former players' parents there to help us celebrate.”
McColloch isn't certain if this will be her last year as a coach, but she knows and appreciates the ride that she's been on.
“I am also proud of the fact that I have lasted in the profession,” she added. “I hope people say that each and every year we are competitive and always have a chance to win. I think they would say that I have built a program from the ground up, because we do not have many down years. Year in and year out we find a way to win. I think a trademark of my teams is that we will always hustle; we step on the court and believe that we can win. My girls do not give up.”
Special thanks to the Midland Reporter-Telegram for its work which contributed to Terri McColloch's story.
ASU's "Coaching Texas" Archive:
Doug Kuhlmann (Football)
Mike Jinks (Football)
Terri McColloch (Volleyball)
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