Toby Rens enters his first year as the Head Men’s Volleyball Coach at the University of Jamestown.
Rens, who has an overall collegiate coaching record of 425-309 in 22 seasons, spent mostly at the NCAA Division I level, comes to Jamestown following the 2024-25 season as the head coach at Poudre High School in Fort Collins, Colo.
In his most recent collegiate season, Rens went 17-11 at NCAA Division III Oswego State University
Prior to coaching at Oswego State, Rens coached 19 seasons at the Division I level, posting a record of 127-102 at University of Maryland Eastern Shore in seven seasons; one season at Chicago State; seasons at University of Pittsburgh with a record of 85-72; four years at Long Island University Brooklyn with a record of 106-46; and two seasons at Georgetown (30-32). He began his head coaching career at NCAA Division II Northern Michigan, finishing with a record of 58-17 in two seasons.
A graduate of Morningside (Iowa) College, Rens spent time as an assistant coach at his alma mater, along with stints at Tennessee Tech, Texas Tech, and George Washington from 1994-98.
Career Highlights
- 9 NCAA Tournament Appearances
- 4 Conference Coach of the Year Honors (Northern League 2025, MEAC 2017, 2002; NEC 2005)
- 435+ Career Wins (DI, DII, and NAIA levels)
- Turned around multiple underperforming programs
- Developed 8 Conference Players of the Year, numerous AVCA All-Americans, All-Region and Academic All-American honorees
- Led teams to national rankings in hitting %, blocks pre set, and aces per set
- Active in NCAA Committees and AVCA/USA Today Polls
Northern Michigan University (1998–1999)
- Compiled a 58–17 record over two seasons
- Guided the Wildcats to two NCAA Division II Tournament appearances
- Won back-to-back Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) regular-season championships
University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES)
First Tenure (2001–2003):
- Inherited a winless program, led turnaround: 3–28 ? 20–15 ? 26–12
- Awarded 2002 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Coach of the Year
- Captured MEAC Northern Division title in 2003
Second Tenure (2014–2017):
- Averaged nearly 20 wins per season, with a 378–266 cumulative record over 18 seasons
- In 2017: 27–9 overall, 12–0 in MEAC play, undefeated division, and a National Invitational Volleyball Championship (NIVC) berth
- Team led NCAA in aces per set; ranked top-25 in hitting metrics
- Named MEAC Coach of the Year again in 2017; also averaging roughly 20 wins per season, with 395 career victories and six NCAA Tournament appearances by that point
LIU–Brooklyn (2004–2007)
- Tallied a 106–46 record with an average of ~26 wins per season
- Won Northeast Conference (NEC) titles and secured NCAA Tournament berths each year
- Named 2005 NEC Coach of the Year
- Program earned three AVCA Academic Awards, teams posted top-tier GPAs; two players selected to ESPN Magazine Academic All-District Team
University of Pittsburgh (2008–2012)
- Turned around a struggling program: five consecutive Big East Tournament berths and four winning seasons in five years
- Coached three AVCA All-Americans, five AVCA All-Region selections, and 11 All-Big East selections
- Oversaw multiple individual honors: Big East Player and Libero of the Year; record set for straight-set shutouts in conference play; national RPI top-50 appearance; strong team rankings in blocks, assists, kills, and hitting percentage; Blue-Gold and Panther Awards; high academic standings
Chicago State University (2013)
- Took over a program with very few previous wins and still managed to garner a pair of victories with limited players
Georgetown University (2018–2020)
- Posted 17–13 overall and 10–8 in BIG EAST play in 2018 — most wins since 2004 and most conference wins since 2001
- Developed first multiple All-BIG EAST honorees since 2002 and set a school record for career digs
SUNY Oswego State (2022)
- Hired in April 2022 with a then career record of 408–298
University of Jamestown (2025–Present)
- Appointed head coach of the men's volleyball team in July 2025
- Brought extensive NCAA experience from DI programs (Georgetown, UMES, Pitt, LIU-Brooklyn, Chicago State, Northern Michigan, plus Oswego)
