Career Highlights:
- RMAC Tournament appearances in all five seasons at CSU Pueblo (2019-2024)
- Three NCAA National Tournament Appearances (2021 Spring, 2021, 2022)
- Back-to-Back RMAC Brechler Highest Team GPA Awards (2021-22, 2022-23)
- AVCA 30 under 30 award winner (2016)
- NJCAA Region IX Coach of the Year (2017, 2018)
- NJCAA DI District C Coach of the Year in 2017 and 2018
Career Record Entering 2024: 77-50
Bio:
Austin Albers joined the Pack on Dec. 18, 2018 as the seventh head coach in program history. He is set to enter his sixth season in 2024 and currently serves as the RMAC representative for the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Head Coaches Committee and is the Chair of the RMAC Head Volleyball Coaches.
Albers’ first season in the fall of 2019 featured a 10-win turnaround for the ThunderWolves and the first RMAC Tournament berth in three seasons. The 2019 squad finished with a .500 win percentage which also marked the first winning season for The Pack since 2014 and the programs best RMAC finish in five years. The 2019 squad set a program-records in block assists. hitting percentage (rally scoring era), and service aces in Coach Albers’ first year at the helm. The Pack also finished with an 11-7 record in RMAC play. The 11 RMAC wins matched the Pack's highest output since the 1997 season.
In his second year, Albers' squad continued to improve. After the 2020 season was pushed to the spring of 2021 due to COVID-19, Albers' 11-4 ThunderWolves finished with the highest win-percentage in school history since 1996 (.773). The .773 win-percentage also places the 2020 squad third all-time in school history. The Pack finished third in RMAC play with a 9-2 record. The conference win percentage of .818 marks the highest since the 1980 season and third highest in school history. The two matches dropped in conference play marks the fewest losses since 1988. The 2020 squad broke the previous year’s program record for hitting efficiency in the rally scoring era and the all-time program record for aces/set. The ThunderWolves reached the RMAC Tournament Final Four for the first time since the 1999 season and landed in the AVCA Top 25 for the first time since 1998 as they sat at #25 in the land. Unfortunately due to COVID – there was not an NCAA National Tournament during the 2020 season.
With COVID in the rearview mirror, Albers and the 2021 squad looked to chase the NCAA National Tournament appearance that was denied the previous season. The ThunderWolves finished the season with a 20-9 overall record which marked the first 20-win season in 24 years of Pack Volleyball. The team finished 5th in RMAC regular season play before going on the road to upset #4 Regis in the first round of the RMAC Postseason Tournament. For the second consecutive year Albers’ team made an appearance in the RMAC Final Four and for the first time in Albers’ short time at the helm qualified for the NCAA National Tournament as a #8 seed in the South Central Region. The 2021 team broke the program record for service aces in the rally scoring era that was set by the 2019 team during Albers’ inaugural season with The Pack. The team also exceled in the classroom, finishing the 2021-22 academic year as the RMAC Brechler Award recipient for volleyball for the highest team GPA across all fifteen programs within the conference.
Albers’ 2022 team had lots of momentum heading into his fourth season at the reins. The 2022 ThunderWolves started off the season with a 10-1 record and were receiving votes in the AVCA Top 25 poll before finishing the season with a 19-9 overall mark and 12-6 record in RMAC play. The Pack rewrote the history books yet again by shattering the all-time program record for hitting efficiency and making their second consecutive NCAA National Tournament appearance as the #8 seed for the South Central Region. This also marked the first season in Albers’ time at CSU Pueblo where the ThunderWolves reeled in Freshman of the Year and AVCA All-American individual honors. The team yet again left their mark in the classroom after finishing with back-to-back Brechler awards and leading the RMAC with a Team GPA of 3.79 overall.
The 2023 season was a rebuilding year for the ThunderWolves who welcomed eight freshman and two transfers to the roster. The inexperience showed early as the team got off to a slow start to the season before putting together a 10-4 record in RMAC play and landing in a tie for fourth place. The Pack yet again showed their offensive prowess by breaking the program record for hitting efficiency for the second consecutive season as they ranked 12th nationally in that category. The team also set the record for service aces in the rally scoring era and rallied to finish one game below .500 marking the first losing season in Coach Albers’ career at 13-14. The highlight for the Pack came in the form of a four-set victory over #6 ranked Metropolitan State, ending the Roadrunners 48-match conference win streak. That win over MSU marked a milestone in the Albers’ era, giving the head coach a win over every team in the RMAC during his first five seasons at the helm. The ThunderWolves also matched their AVCA All-American honors from the year before, marking the 5th All-American to play for Albers during his 10 seasons as a head coach.
Prior to arriving in Pueblo, Albers brought with him 10 years of collegiate coaching experience at NCAA, National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) levels.
Albers spent the previous five seasons as head coach at Laramie County Community College in Cheyenne, Wyoming, where he produced a 145-57 record and exits as the program's all-time win percentage leader (.718). He received the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) 30 Under Thirty Award in 2016, which recognizes the top thirty up-and-coming coaches under thirty years of age in the entire country. He proved his place on the list by earning Region IX North Coach of the Year recognition the past two seasons and the Wyoming Community College Athletic Conference (WCCAC) Coach of the Year, and the NJCAA DI District C Coach of the Year in 2017 and 2018.
He led the Golden Eagles to 25 or more wins in each of his five seasons and guided the team to the NJCAA Division I National Tournament the last two years. LCCC also captured the Region IX Regular Season and Tournament Championships in each of the last two seasons.
The 2018 squad produced a 32-9 overall record, finished ninth at the NJCAA Championships, won the Region IX North Regular Season title and the District C Championship. Avery Nelson earned All-American honors for the second time and signed on to play at NCAA Division I Long Beach State University. Albers also had another player sign with a Division I and sent two to Division II institutions. The 2017 team went 34-8 overall with a 26-2 conference record and finished 10th at the national championships. The squad won the program's second all-time Region IX North regular season title and its first ever Region IX North Conference Tournament Championship.
Albers took over a team that had posted a 14-25 record in 2013 and flipped the script in his first season with a 25-15 mark. In just two seasons at the helm, Albers guided the Golden Eagles to a winning conference record at 17-6 (28-10 overall). LCCC went 28-10 overall and 17-6 in 2016 before surpassing 30 wins and reaching the national tournament in 2017 and 2018.
In his career, Albers has guided 21 players to four-year scholarships, which included eight players who signed at the NCAA Division I level. He has coached three All-Americans and has helped produce two Region IX North Players of the Year, three Region IX North Setters of the Year, two Region IX North Freshman of the Year awards, 16 Region IX All-Region, 18 Region IX North All-Tournament Team and 19 WCCAC All-Conference honorees.
In addition to their success on the court, the Golden Eagles earned the NJCAA Academic Team Award for maintaining above a 3.00 team GPA three times during Albers' tenure.
During his time at Laramie CCC, Albers also was the founder, owner and club director of the Windy City Junior Volleyball Club. He formed the USA Volleyball affiliated club and managed as many as 10 coaches for five club teams, which created additional opportunities for the growth of youth volleyball in Cheyenne.
Prior to accepting his first collegiate head coaching job at LCCC, Albers was an assistant volleyball coach at Sheridan College for two years and also served one season as the interim head men's soccer coach. At Sheridan, Albers assisted in leading the team to a fourth place finish in the Region IX North Conference Tournament in 2013.
Before his time at Sheridan College he was an assistant volleyball coach at Black Hills State University for three seasons. While at BHSU, the Yellow Jackets reached their second straight NAIA National Tournament appearance before making the transition to NCAA Division II.
Albers has been immersed in college athletics and volleyball his entire life, as his father, Jhett Albers, is a former Director of Athletics at Black Hills State University and was the head volleyball coach at BHSU for 11 years.
Albers graduated with honors from Black Hills State University in May of 2012 with a bachelor's degree in exercise science management and a minor in athletic coaching. He played collegiate soccer for Western Nebraska Community College before transferring to BHSU.
Albers lives in Pueblo with his wife, Maggie, their son, Emmitt, and their daughter Ellison.
