• Bonnie Kenny Year by Year Coaching Record

Updated 3/20/08

The University of Delaware introduced Bonnie Kenny as its new women's volleyball head coach Feb. 7, 2002.

Kenny, 45, a former head coach at the University of South Carolina and most recently at the University of Massachusetts, is just the fifth coach in the 30-year history of Blue Hen volleyball. She will begin her sixth season at the helm of the Blue Hens in 2007.

It took Kenny just three seasons to lead a team that had suffered six straight losing campaigns into one that came within one match of a Colonial Athletic Association title and NCAA Tournament berth in 2004.

Kenny inherited a young team in 2002 and led her first Blue Hen squad to a record of 9-20 and a sixth place finish in the Colonial Athletic Association with a mark of 6-10. The Blue Hens advanced to the CAA quarterfinals before falling to No. 3 seed James Madison.

In Kenny's second season in 2003, the Blue Hens improved with a record of 11-17 and placed fifth in the CAA standings with a 5-9 mark, just missing a berth in the four-team CAA playoffs.

Things came together in 2004 as Kenny led a talented squad to a record of 23-9 - the most wins by Delaware since 1997 - and a third place finish in the CAA regular season standings with a 9-5 mark. The Hens upended No. 2 seed Hofstra 3-0 in the semifinals before falling to host and No. 1 seed Towson 3-0 in the title game. After opening the season 0-2, the Hens reeled off wins in 15 of their next 16 matches. Among the other highlights was tournament titles at the Delaware Invitational and Rider Tournament.

After posting an 11-20 record and missing out on the CAA Tournament in 2005, Kenny helped turn things around again for the Blue Hens in 2006. Delaware posted a 21-7 record, placed fifth in the CAA regular season standings with an 11-7 mark, and advanced to the CAA Tournament semifinals before falling to host and eventual champion Hofstra.

The 2007 season turned out to be Bonnie Kenny’s finest at the helm of the Blue Hen program, as she led Delaware to a 31-5 record, the team’s first ever CAA Championship, and a berth in the NCAA playoffs. In the Tournament, the Hens upset Princeton, 3-1, in the first round before losing a closely-contested 3-1 decision to No. 18 St. John’s in the round of 32.

For her efforts, Kenny was named the CAA Coach of the Year. Under her tutelage, the 2007 edition of the Blue Hens broke the school record for highest winning percentage (.861), while they also set single-season marks for most kills (16.31), digs (19.75), and assists (14.77) per game.

Kenny's six-year record at Delaware now stands at 106-80 (.570) overall and 50-44 (.532) in CAA regular season play. The Hens have advanced to the league tournament four times in her five seasons as the coach, including three berths in the semifinals and the championship last year.

A 1984 graduate of the University of Tennessee, Kenny served as head coach at the University of South Carolina for nine seasons from 1984 until 1992 and served as head coach at the University of Massachusetts the previous nine seasons since 1993. She has now posted a 24-year career record of 446-332 (.561), including a mark of 169-115 (.595) at UMass and 171-137 (.555) at South Carolina. Her 446 career wins rank among the top 50 active Division I coaches for victories. She was named Atlantic 10 Coach of the Year in 1996.

"The University of Delaware is certainly fortunate to have someone with the experience and talents of Bonnie Kenny join our program," said Delaware Director of Athletics Edgar Johnson at the press conference announcing Kenny's hiring. "She has proven her leadership and outstanding coaching ability for 18 years at the NCAA Division I level and we are confident she will continue to keep Delaware among the top programs in the Colonial Athletic Association. Her ability to get the most from her team both on the court and in the classroom is evident and we are delighted to have her continue that record of excellence here at Delaware."

"I am excited about beginning a new chapter in my coaching career," said Kenny upon her hiring. "The University of Delaware is a wonderful opportunity not only for myself but also for the student-athletes that are part of the volleyball program and the ones that I will recruit to come here. This campus will sell itself and the quality of the institution will only enhance our recruiting efforts. The Colonial Athletic Association is a competitive conference that will require us to prepare for every match. I look forward to competing at a level that can give us the opportunity to win conference championships and advance to the NCAA tournament. It's an honor for me to compete on the Barbara Viera Court. Barb is a pioneer in this sport and has meant a great deal to me throughout my professional career. I have always respected her and her program and I look forward to carrying on her legacy at UD."

Kenny led UMass to three 20-win seasons, four semifinal appearances at the Atlantic 10 Championship and two trips to the National Invitational Volleyball Championship (NIVC). The NIVC appearances marked the school's first postseason bids since 1980. She led the team to a record of 15-11 in her final season in 2001, including a fifth place mark of 8-8 in Atlantic 10 play.

Kenny built a tradition of success at UMass by recruiting athletes who excel on the volleyball court and in the classroom. She coached 11 A-10 all-conference selections and three A-10 all-championship picks in her nine seasons with the Minutewomen. In 1996, Dionne Nash garnered conference Player of the Year honors.

Academically, the Minutewomen also excelled as seven players received American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) All-District acclaim and three Minutewomen were named to the CoSIDA Academic All-District team under Kenny's tutelage. In 2000, Jill Meyers received the distinguished Woody Hayes National Leadership Award.

Kenny was selected as the President-Elect of the American Volleyball Coaches Association in September, 2004 and currently serves as the organization's President. She will serve in that capacity through the 2006-07 season.

During the 2003-04 season, she served as the Chair for both the AVCA All-America and New England Region Awards Committee. She also has been active on the national and international scene, serving on the Olympic Festival Selection Committee and serving as supervisor of venue operations for volleyball at the U.S. Olympic Festival in 1989.

In the fall of 2006, Kenny and associate head coach Cindy Gregory co-authored an instructional book “Volleyball: Steps to Success” published by Human Kinetics Publishers. The 192-page book is part of the popular Steps to Success Sports Series which has sold over 1.5 million copies. The book was designed to help players and coaches master the essentials of the game and offers a comprehensive, progressive approach with a proven system for learning and expert instruction.

A native of Meriden, CT where she led her Maloney High School team to four state championships, Kenny was inducted into the Connecticut Volleyball Hall of Fame in 2000. While at Maloney, she earned the prestigious Guiffrida Award, given to the most outstanding female athlete in the state of Connecticut. In the spring of 2004, she was inducted into Maloney High School's Hall of Fame.

Before her tenure at UMass, Kenny spent nine seasons as the head coach at the University of South Carolina, a program she took over in 1984 only a few months after graduating from college.

Kenny was a four-time volleyball letterwinner at Tennessee, leading the Lady Volunteers to two SEC championships, three NCAA Tournaments, and a four-year record of 137-56. A three-time team captain, she earned Academic All-America and All-SEC honors in 1983. Kenny was also named to the Dean's List for seven quarters and was a Tennessee scholar-athlete from 1980 to 1983. She was inducted into the University of Tennessee Athletics Hall of Fame in September, 2006.