Midland University Women's Volleyball

Giesselmann has led Midland to a 20+ win season in five consecutive campaigns. Under his guidance, since arriving in 2010, Midland has posted a 149-61 record and won a pair of GPAC postseason championships. Giesselmann enters the 2016 season with a 376-141 career record as an NAIA head coach. His .727 winning percentage is the 11th best among active volleyball coaches, and those 376 wins rank 16th.  Midland appeared in its third straight GPAC postseason title match in 2015, claiming the championship for the second time in two years. That season also marked the Warriors third straight (third all-time) trip to Nationals, all with Giesselmann at the helm. Midland ranked as high as No. 2 in the NAIA Coaches' Poll in 2015, setting a new high-water mark in program history. In 2013, the Warriors set a new school record with 37 wins, including a 22-match winning streak (tied in 2015) to begin the year which shatterred Midland's previous mark of 10 set in 1995. Their 13 GPAC wins set a new instituational record (also matched in 2015). Midland was ranked as high as No. 5 during the season in the NAIA Coaches' Poll. Midland won the 2013 GPAC Postseaon Tournament, earning an automatic bid into the NAIA National Tournament for the first time in school history. The Warriors went 2-1 in pool play to advance to the final bracket where they beat conference rival Northwestern (3-1) before falling to the eventual National Champions, University of Texas at Brownsville (3-1) in the "Elite 8". Midland was ranked No. 7 in the Postseason Coaches Poll. They posted an 8-3 regular season record against teams who qualified for the National Tournament and also went 8-3 against teams who were ranked in the preseason, at the time of the match, or were ranked in the Final Top 25 Poll. In Giesselmann's previous three years as head coach, the Warriors nearly tripled their GPAC wins total and went from having an eight-win season in 2009 to finishing with 21 wins in 2011 and 2012. Under Giesselmann's direction, the 2012 team appeared in the semifinal round of the GPAC Postseason Tournament. They also had five postseason award winners, earned 11 GPAC victories and were ranked in the NAIA Top 25 Coaches Poll throughout the season for the first time in school history. Additionally, Giesselmann has helped to cultivate success off the court, with his teams winning the American Volleyball Coaches Association Team Academic Award in three consecutive seasons. Giesselmann joined the Warriors in 2010 after coaching at Creighton University since 2003. At Creighton, Giesselmann served as Creighton's recruiting coordinator while working heavily with individual on-court training. During his time at Creighton, Giesselmann worked closely with and helped develop the institution's first two All-Americans at middle blocker: Kelly Goc and Jessica Hotus. With his recommendations, Creighton offered and signed the top prep players in Nebraska and the Midwest to complete eight top-notch recruiting classes. Creighton's seven selections to the MVC All-Freshman Team in the last seven years are tied for second-most leaguewide, and the Jays became one of two schools in league history with multiple All-Freshman team picks in consecutive seasons (2004 and 2005). Prior to his service at Creighton, Giesselmann was Head Coach at College of St. Mary from 1994-2001. There he earned NAIA National Coach of the Year honors in 2000 and Region Coach of the Year accolades in 1996, 1999, 2000 and 2001. He also claimed Midlands Collegiate Athletic Conference Coach of the Year honors in seven straight seasons from 1995-2001. As the College of St. Mary's all-time winningest coach, Giesselmann led the Flames to a number-two national ranking in 2001 and four national tournament appearances finishing in the NAIA Elite Eight twice and the NAIA Final Four in 2000. He was also named the Omaha World-Herald Nebraska State College Women's Coach of the Year in 1999, and Giesselmann earned two regional championships, six consecutive MCAC championships and seven consecutive MCAC tournament titles. Giesselmann owns a 319-126 career NAIA record, ranking 12th among active head coaches with an impressive .717 winning percentage. Giesselmann has coached 11 Academic All-Americans, 14 All-Americans, 24 All-Region athletes, 19 All-GPAC players, 33 All-MCAC athletes, three Region of the Year players, five MCAC Player of the Year athletes and has had six players named to the NAIA National Championship All-Tournament Team. In addition to his teams' success on the court, all eight of Giesselmann's squads at CSM earned American Volleyball Coaches Association National Team Academic Awards, from 1994-2001. He also received the Omaha Sportscasters Recognition Award in 1996 and 2000. Giesselmann earned a Bachelor of Arts in Education with an Endorsement in Health and Physical Education K-12 and an Endorsement in Coaching at Wayne State College in 1988. Giesselmann is married to Dr. Paige Groppe and they have three children, twin 18-year old boys Hunter and Garret and a 7-year old daughter, Ansley. The Giesselmann's reside in Fremont.   2013 2011 Midland University 21-11, 11-5 GPAC Semifinals 2010 Midland University 13-19, 4-12 Served as Assistant Head Coach at Creighton University 2003-2009 2001 College of Saint Mary 34-4 Elite 8 2000 College of Saint Mary 34-6 Final 4 1999 College of Saint Mary 39-4 Elite 8 1998 College of Saint Mary 35-8 National Tournament 1997 College of Saint Mary 26-9 Conference Champions 1996 College of Saint Mary 31-8 Conference Champions 1995 College of Saint Mary 21-15 Conference Tr. Champs 1994 College of Saint Mary 7-26 Served as Second Assistant Coach at University of Nebraska at Omaha 1993-1994 1992 Duchesne Academy 13-11 1991 Winside HS 20-4 District Champions 1990 Winside HS 20-3 District Champions 1989 Winside HS 4-11 1988 Winside HS 4-13   Venditte enters her fifth season on staff with the Midland University volleyball team in 2015. She began as a member of the coaching staff as a Graduate Assistant for two season before being added as a full-time assistant. Venditte also oversee the women's strength and conditioning programs at Midland University.  She has twice been named the GPAC Volleyball Assistant Coach of the Year (2013 & '15), and was named the Assistant Coach of the Year by the AVCA for the West Central Region in 2013. Venditte is a graduate of Millard West High School and also played college volleyball at Dana College where she lettered three times. Venditte is a 2011 graduate of Midland University in K-12 Physical Education. Venditte is currently finishing her Masters of Education at Midland University in Leadership and Learning. Venditte resides in Fremont, Neb. Nate Mongan begins his sixth season as an assistant coach for the Warriors. Mongan has experienced success coaching the past eight years. In addition to his coaching duties at Midland, Mongan coaches for the Premier Volleyball Club in Omaha. He has coached 16, 17 and 18 year-olds and has qualified his teams for the Junior Olympic National Championships each year since 2005. This past summer, Mongan's 17 year-old team placed 5th at the Junior Olympic National Volleyball Championships and had one player named to the 17 American All Tournament Team. Mongan has also coached in the high school ranks. He coached Mead High School in 2006 and 2007 guiding the Raiders to a state tournament semifinals appearance in Class D1. Mongan has also coach junior high volleyball at Mead in 2007 through 2009. Mongan holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Bellevue University and an Associates of Applied Science in Animal Science from Vatterott College. Mongan and his wife Sarah have two young boys. The Mongan's reside in Mead. Nate is the Claims Manager for The Hartford Insurance Company in Omaha and his wife Sarah is a veterinarian in a small animal practice in Omaha. Rod Richardson begins his sixth season as an assistant coach with the Warriors. Prior to coaching at Midland, Richardson was a volunteer coach at Creighton University in 2009. Richardson has also been an assistant coach at College of St. Mary for 14 years, during which time the Flames qualified for the national tournament in eight of those seasons. Richardson has also been an assistant coach at Omaha Westside High School. During his tenure at Westside, the Warriors qualified for the state tournament five times. A native of Iowa City, Iowa, Richardson holds a Masters Degree in Environment Engineering and a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering, with Highest Distinction, from the University of Iowa. Richardson works at HDR in Omaha, an architecture and engineering firm, as Computer Systems Analyst and Project Manager. Richardson and his wife Shirley live in Omaha. Richardson gets the most joy out of coaching volleyball from seeing his former players continue in the sports as players and coaches.