August 16, 2011

Volleyball Adds a Pair to Coaching Staff

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MACON, Ga. – Mercer head volleyball coach Noelle Rooke announced the addition of Dan Follett and Greg Walker to the team's coaching staff Tuesday.

Follet, a native of Cranberry Township, Pennsylvania, joins the staff after graduating from Juniata College in the spring of 2011.  While at Juniata, Follett was a three-year starter and letterwinner for the Eagles and a key member of the 2009 squad that captured the Molten Division III National Championship.  That same year, the team advanced to the championship of the Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association finals before falling to Penn State.

While competing for Juniata, Follett worked as an instructional coach at the Penn State Volleyball camp, helping develop campers' fundamental skills while emphasizing the value of teamwork.

Prior to his time at Juniata, Follett was a highly decorated four-year player at Seneca Valley Senior High School.  Follett's list of individual accolades includes being named to the 2007 Fab-50 All-State team, a first-team All-WPIAL selection in 2007 and a second-team All-WPIAL selection in 2006.  Follet also collected first-team all-section honors in three seasons with Seneca Valley.

Follett's coaching experience began in high school, where he spend time as an assistant coach of the school's women's varsity team and head coach of the women's JV team.  In those capacities, Follett helped plan and organize practices, made in-game adjustments and helped organize the 2006 Seneca Volleyball Tournament.

In 2007, Follett also served as head coach of the Pittsburgh Elite U-15 Boy's Volleyball Club, coaching the team in several tournaments including a trip to the USAV Boy's National Tournament.

While coaching for Mercer, Follett plans to complete coursework towards a Master's degree in Business Administration.

Walker has an extensive coaching career that includes positions at the high school, collegiate and national levels.  Most recently, Walker spent six months as an assistant coach with the Juniata men's volleyball program.  At Juniata, Walker played an intricate role in the development of 2011 AVCA first-team All-American Chris Vrooman.

Before his stint at Juniata, Walker was as both a student assistant coach and volunteer coach with the storied Penn State women's volleyball program.  From August-December 2009, Walker was the head coach of the Penn State women's club team, helping the squad capture Penn State's first League Championship against 10 other Division I club teams.

As a player, Walker assumed the roles of setter and libero for the Penn State Altoona men's volleyball club team, helping the group achieve a top-20 ranking among NIRSA Division II programs.

Walker has also worked as a clinician at various camps and clinics, including Federazione Italiana Pallavolo (FIVB – Italy), USA Volleyball High Performance Camps and camps at the University of Oregon, Penn State, Stanford University, Villanova University and Emory University.

Over the past four years, Walker has also worked in coaching positions at both the Revolution Volleyball Club and the Highland Elite Volleyball Team (Keystone State Games).

An active member of USA Volleyball, the American Volleyball Coaches' Association and the National Federatin of High School Sports, Walker is a 2011 graduate of Penn State with a bachelor's degree in Kinesiology with an emphasis in Fitness Studies.

Follett and Walker make their debut on the sidelines for the Bears when the team starts the 2011 season against Davidson on Friday, August 26 at the Winthrop Classic.