Stony Brook, N.Y. - Some of the top coaches from around college volleyball descended on the Stony Brook campus in June for a coaching clinic presented by The Art of Coaching Volleyball.

The clinic was one of eight throughout North America in 2015 sponsored by Art of Coaching and featured some of the game’s most prominent leaders. Stony Brook head coach Coley Pawlikowski was joined by a group that included Russ Rose (Penn State), John Dunning (Stanford), Joe Sagula (North Carolina) Terry Liskevych (Oregon State), and Mark Barnard (Oregon State). That collection of coaches has combined for over 2,500 Division I head coaching wins, with Rose at the helm of defending national champion Penn State, a team the Seawolves will face Saturday, Aug. 29.

"It was simply incredible to host the Art of Coaching right here at Stony Brook,” said head volleyball coach Coley Pawlikowski. “We had nearly 250 attendees who came out to learn from the best in our sport. Outside of the convention around our Final Four, this is the premier coaching clinic there is in our sport … to host such an event was fantastic! The content of the clinic was invaluable and my staff and I were so fortunate to have Russ Rose, John Dunning, Terry Liskevych, Joe Sagula and Mark Barnard right here on our campus. It was an incredible opportunity to have access and to host that lineup of coaches while showcasing our university and program.

“The opportunity for our athletes to work on-court with those coaches is something that I know they will never forget and will be a milestone in their experience here at Stony Brook. The special part to me was for my staff and our athletes to see the winningest coaches in our game all learning and listening to one another throughout the weekend as they strive to continue to be the best. As a coach, we are never done learning and that is an important message that we pass along to our athletes. Russ, John, Terry, Joe and Mark set an incredible example of that for everyone in attendance.

“We were excited to see the support of growing our game through the turnout. We had attendees travel from all over the Northeast to be here and the feedback has been outstanding. We are proud to showcase Stony Brook to over 100 local high school coaches and teachers that have access to numerous athletes. Multiple attendees throughout the weekend that are regionally local commented on how wonderful our facilities were and they had not been to campus in several years. They left very impressed. The sense of pride I have in my staff and athletes after this event is incredible.

“I would like to thank the folks from the Art of Coaching, the lineup of fellow colleagues in the sport that made the trip out to Long Island in the busy recruiting season, our athletes, my staff and the folks that helped out to make this a wonderful event."

The Seawolves open the 2015 season Friday, Aug. 28 at the Penn State Classic in University Park, Pennsylvania.

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