Head Coach
DANIJELA TOMIC
BGSU Head Coach Danijela Tomic enters her 12th year at the helm of the Falcon volleyball program in 2023 and has established her impact on the volleyball program. In her first year with the Falcons, she took the team to heights never reached before, winning a match in the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history and advancing to the second round. More recently, Coach Tomic was named 2017 MAC Coach of the Year for the first time in her career, after leading the Falcons to its first MAC Regular Season title since 1992 by a league mark of 13-3. She received the award again following the 2020-21 season when the Falcons finished the regular season 20-1 with the MAC Regular Season title, including an 18-match win streak. The Falcons went on to win the MAC Tournament as well as advancing to the NCAA Tournament once again.
In 2022, Tomic and the Falcons returned to the NCAA Tournament for the second time in three seasons, capturing a MAC Tournament victory. The Orange and Brown concluded the season with a record of 22-10, including wins over Tennessee and Mississippi State, who were both receiving votes in the national polls at the time of each respective match. At the conclusion of the season, Petra Indrova was named the MAC Player of the Year for the second consecutive season while Lauryn Hovey was named the MAC Freshman of the Year. Indrova and Hovey were both named All-MAC First Team. Hovey was also named to the MAC All-Freshman Team with Jessica Andrews. Andrews was also named to the All-MAC Second Team.
Tomic guided the Falcons to a 21-9 record in 2021, the program's third consecutive season with 20 or more wins. Under Tomic, the program has five 20-win seasons. Her first victory of the season, a 3-1 win over Butler, was the 150th win of her career at Bowling Green. That match also featured Katie Kidwell's 444th career block assist, setting a new program record. The Falcons opened MAC play with 11 straight wins, garnering a spectacular 33-3 set record. In the first home MAC match of the season, Bowling Green swept Buffalo for Tomic's 100th career MAC victory. BGSU finished with a perfect 10-0 record at home, just the second undefeated home season in program history. The Falcons also captured the MAC East Division regular season title for the fourth time in five seasons and advanced to the MAC Tournament Championship for the third consecutive year.
The 2021 campaign also featured Bowling Green volleyball's first AVCA All-American, Petra Indrova. Indrova, who was also named MAC Player of the Year, earned Honorable Mention All-American. She was one of several Falcons to earn postseason accolades, including MAC Defensive Player of the Year Julia Walz, All-MAC selections Katelyn Meyer and Hanna Laube, and All-MAC Freshmen Team member Kat Mandly. Meyer's All-MAC First Team honor was the fourth of her career, making her the first player in program history to earn All-MAC First Team four times. Additionally, BGSU landed a conference-best ten student-athletes on the Academic All-MAC list. Hanna Laube led the way with a 4.0 GPA, one of five MAC volleyball student-athletes to earn a 4.0. She was also named Third Team CoSIDA All-American.
The 2020-21 campaign for the Falcons saw the program return to the NCAA Tournament following the victories in the MAC Tournament and the MAC Regular season. In total, the Orange and Brown concluded the season with a 22-2 record, marking the second consecutive 20-win second for the program. The season saw an 18-0 start, marking the best start to a season in BGSU Athletic department history while also breaking the record for most consecutive wins in program history. The Falcons also saw Katelyn Meyer, Petra Indrova and Hanna Laube being named All-MAC First Team with Katie Kidwell being named to the Second Team. In addition to her First Team honor, Laube earned MAC Setter of the Year. As for the MAC Tournament, Meyer was named the MVP with Indrova and Jacqueline Askin being named to the All-Tournament Team as well.
The 2019 season for the Falcons saw the first 20-win season for the Orange and Brown since 2016 as Bowling Green made a postseason run in the NIVC Tournament, claiming a first round victory over Purdue Fort Wayne, marking the program's first postseason win since 2012. The Falcons finished the season with a 20-13 record, including being 11-5 in MAC play. At the end of the regular season, Katelyn Meyer was named to the All-MAC First Team while Meyer and Isabelle Marciniak were named to the MAC All-Tournament Team. Additionally, multiple Falcons etched their names in the record book over the course of the season.
During the 2018 season, the Falcons captured the second of back-to-back MAC Regular Season titles under Tomic, posting a 19-12 record, including a second consecutive 13-3 MAC season. At the conclusion of the season, Libero Kallie Seimet accomplished back-to-back MAC Defensive Player of the Year awards, as well as being named MAC Player of the Year 2017 and 2018, becoming the first athlete in MAC history to do so. Additionally, Katie Kidwell was named to the All-MAC First Team for the second time in as many seasons. Katelyn Meyer was also named to the All-MAC First Team, as well as the All-MAC Freshman Team.
In its historic run in the 2017 campaign, the Bowling Green volleyball squad featured numerous notable wins and awards, including its first win over Miami since 2013, first win at Ohio since 2001, as well as its first win at Western Michigan since 1995. Individually, Tomic's team also received six different All-MAC honors by four different players as well as nine of the season's 12 MAC Defensive Player of the Week awards. Overcoming several odds, the Falcons were voted by league coaches to finish fifth overall in the East Division in the 2017 MAC preseason poll, before they earned the MAC Regular Season title by a record of 13-3, and an invite into the NIVC Tournament by finishing the season with a record of 17-12.
In the last few seasons, Tomic has also developed a Bowling Green program that has earned every MAC individual postseason award including 2021 MAC Player of the Year (Petra Indrova), 2021 MAC Defensive Player of the Year (Julia Walz), 2020-21 MAC Setter of the Year (Hanna Laube), 2018 and 2017 MAC Player of the Year (Kallie Seimet), 2016 MAC Freshman of the Year (Isabelle Marciniak), 2016 MAC Setter of the Year (Isabelle Marciniak), and back-to-back-to-back MAC Defensive Player of the Years (2016 – Madeline Garda, 2017, 2018 – Kallie Seimet,).
In her first season with BGSU, Tomic also guided a 2012 team to a second-place finish in the Mid-American Conference regular season and then took the program on a magical run through the MAC Tournament that included five set victories in both the semifinals and championship matches. BGSU went on to face Yale in the first round of the NCAA Tournament and earned yet another five-set win, before succumbing to No. 1-ranked Penn State in the second round.
Tomic has posted a career record of 328-187 during a 17-year career that also includes seven seasons as the head coach at Florida International prior to her arrival at Bowling Green.
BGSU has become a determined and tough-minded team under Tomic, winning 10 consecutive five-set matches at one point – three of which came during that 2012 postseason run. In 2013, the team earned a huge five-set victory over No. 13 BYU – the first win over a ranked opponent in program history. Over the course of five years, BGSU has a 26-16 record in five-set matches under Tomic.
In her first five years at BGSU, Tomic’s teams compiled an array of awards, including six first-team all-conference honors, a second-team all-conference honoree, three All-MAC Honorable Mention recipient, two MAC All-Freshman team selections, three members of the MAC All-Tournament Team, the MAC Tournament Most Valuable Player, 24 MAC Player of the Week honors, four MAC Scholar-Athlete of the Week awards and one MAC Distinguished Scholar-Athlete.
Academically, the program has excelled under Tomic. The team earned public recognition by the NCAA for an APR rate that ranks among the top-10 percent in the country in the sport of volleyball. 34 Falcons have been named either Academic All-MAC or honorable mention Academic All-MAC in five years. As well, Lindsey Butterfield (2012) and Laura Avila (2013) were both named to the first-team Academic All-District Team, while Erica Fullenkamp (2014) also earned second-team Academic All-District accolades. Finally, the program has earned the AVCA Team Academic Award for 22 consecutive seasons – the second-longest streak in the country.
Prior to her arrival at Bowling Green, Tomic was a three-time Sun Belt Conference Coach of the Year at Florida International. In seven years as head coach at FIU, she had a record of 158-61.
A 1999 graduate of Arkansas-Little Rock, Tomic was named Sun Belt Conference Coach of the Year in 2006, 2008, and 2009, guiding the Panthers to the NCAA Tournament in each of those last two seasons. The 2009 team set a program record by going 32-4, which included a 17-0 mark in conference play.
Tomic took over at FIU in 2005 and made an immediate impact as her team improved by 12 wins over the previous season and reached the SBC Tournament as the No. 6 seed after missing out in two of the previous three years before her arrival.
In seven years at FIU, her players earned six AVCA All-American awards, two Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year honors, and 24 All-Sun Belt Conference awards. Under her tutelage, one student-athlete was named AVCA South Region Freshman of the Year.
Tomic also demands well-rounded student-athletes as her team earned the Dr. Paul D. Gallagher Community Service Award in 2008, presented to the FIU team that has gone the extra mile in performing community service throughout the year. She had 20 selections to the Sun Belt Conference Commissioner’s List (grade point average of 3.5 or better) and 27 selections to the Sun Belt Conference Academic Honor Roll.
Prior to her time at FIU, Tomic was an assistant coach at LSU during the 2003 and 2004 seasons. Before that, she spent six years as an assistant coach at her alma mater UALR from 1997-03. She played at UALR from 1995-97 as an outside hitter, right side hitter, and setter, helping to lead the team to the 1996 NCAA Tournament. She was named Most Valuable Player of the SBC Tournament that year and recorded a tournament record 32 digs during the championship match in 1996.
A graduate of the NCAA Women Coaches Academy in 2013, Tomic is also a member of The Alliance of Women Coaches.
A native of Catici, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Tomic graduated from UALR in 1999 with a degree in health education. Tomic graduated Summa Cum Laude with a Master's in Coaching and Athletics Administration from Concordia University Irvine in 2021.
Associate Head Coach
ALEX DELPIOMBO
Alex DelPiombo joined the Bowling Green State University volleyball staff in February 2016, bringing over 15 years of coaching and playing experience to the Falcons' staff. DelPiombo was recently promoted to the title of Associate Head Volleyball Coach ahead of the 2019 season.
Entering her eighth season with the Falcons, DelPiombo has been a member of a staff that has coached the Orange and Brown to back-to-back MAC Regular Season titles in 2017 and 2018 as well as a MAC Regular Season and MAC Tournament titles in 2020-21 and 2022, including trips to the NCAA Tournament in both seasons. Over her seven years with the program, BGSU has a 142-68 record, including a 98-23 MAC standing.
Under DelPiombo's guidance, mutlitple Falcon setters have seen success and accolades. In 2016, Isabelle Marciniak was named MAC Freshman of the Year and MAC Setter of the Year, the latter being the program's first honor. Marciniak also collected All-MAC Honorable Mention and MAC All-Tournament Team over the course of her career. She concluded her career with 3,196 assists, second-highest in program history. In 2021, Hanna Laube was named MAC Setter of the Year after logging 11.23 assists per set, the seventh-highest single-season mark in school history. She was recognized on the All-MAC First Team and Second Team, as well as the program's second Academic All-American. In 2022, Lauryn Hovey played a outside hitter-setter hybrid role en route to being named the MAC Freshman of the Year and All-MAC First Team.
With DelPiombo on staff, two Falcons have earned MAC Player of the Year. Kallie Seimet and Petra Indrova, both being named twice, have won the conference's highest individual honor. Additionally, Julia Walz was named MAC Defensive Player of the Year in 2021, and Laube earned her MAC Setter of the Year honor at the end of the 2020-21 season. Katelyn Meyer was named to the All-MAC First Team in 2021, the first four-time First Team selection in program history.
DelPiombo came to BGSU after spending two years as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at Samford University in Birmingham, Ala. Prior to her time at Samford, DelPiombo worked for two years as an assistant coach and the director of volleyball operations at Morehead State University.
While an assistant coach at Samford, DelPiombo managed the recruiting efforts and was the primary contact to all potential student-athletes, organized the recruiting visits and campus tours. She also worked directly with the setters, while also assisting in all areas of on court training, video analysis, team travel and the promotion and organization of the volleyball summer camps.
Over her two seasons at Samford, the Bulldogs posted an overall record of 35-25 and a 21-11 record in Southern Conference play.
In 2014, the Bulldogs finished the season with a record of 20-13 overall and won the 2014 Southern Conference Championship Tournament with a 3-1 win over Furman in the championship match to advance to the 2014 NCAA Women’s Volleyball Championship Tournament. Samford drew Alabama in the first round of the NCAA Tournament and took the Crimson Tide to five sets before falling to the SEC powerhouse, 3-2. Michaela Reesor earned a spot on the All-SoCon First Team, while Chelsi Carter and Erin Bognar were both named to the All-SoCon Second Team.
With the loss of three starters, including the 2013 SoCon Player of the Year and the 2013 SoCon Libero of the Year heading in to the 2015 season, the Bulldogs finished the year with an overall record of 15-12 and finished in fourth-place overall in the Southern Conference with a 10-6 league record on the season. T.J. Russell and Bognar were both named to the All-SoCon Second Team, while Kate Neisler earned a spot on the All-SoCon Freshmen Team.
DelPiombo’s time as an assistant coach and director of operations at MSU provided her the opportunity to gain experience in setter training and other aspects of on court training. She also assisted in recruiting, team academic advising and scheduling. She was very involved in community relations as she promoted and organized summer camps and kids clinics.
During her time at Morehead State in 2012 and 2013, she helped guide the Eagles to a conference-record 24-match winning streak and the team’s third and fourth straight Ohio Valley Conference titles, winning the championship in both 2012 and 2013. The Eagles posted an overall OVC record of 31-1, recorded back-to-back seasons with the highest attendance in the OVC in 2012 and 2013, and also made an NCAA Tournament appearance in 2013.
In 2013, DelPiombo’s second on the MSU sidelines, the Eagles went 27-8 overall, 15-1 in conference play and won both the 2013 OVC Regular Season Championship and the 2013 OVC Championship Tournament. MSU fell to the No. 18 ranked Fighting Illini of the Big-10 in the first round of the 2013 NCAA Tournament.
The previous season in 2012, MSU posted an overall record of 26-7 and went a perfect 16-0 in OVC play to win the 2012 OVC Regular Season Championship, their third straight OVC Championship title.
Over her two seasons with the Eagles, DelPiombo helped to tutor five All-OVC honorees in Ellie Roberson, Annie Gruenschlaeger, Leslie Schellhaas, Courtney Smith and Aryn Bohannon, as well as a 2013 All-OVC Newcomer selection in Alex Fitzmorris.
A recipient of a 2011 American Volleyball Coaches Association Coaches4Coaches Scholarship, DelPiombo has assisted in the coordination and promotion of summer camps at both Samford and Morehead State. She has also served as the setting position coach for both the Dex Volleyball Camp, LLC. and the Morehead Volleyball Camp, LLC., and worked as an assistant coach at the KIVA Elite Camp, the Joe Getzin Whitehall High School Camp and as an assistant camps coach for four years at Gannon University.
DelPiombo was a decorated player for four years at Gannon University (Pa.) where she was the starting setter her final two seasons and served as the team captain for two seasons as well. She finished her career with 1,754 assists to rank seventh in school history. DelPiombo also helped guide Gannon to three NCAA Tournament berths.
As a four-time member of the school’s Dean’s List, she was also a four-time winner of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Scholar-Athlete award during her collegiate career.
She graduated in 2012 with a bachelor’s degree in communications.
A native of Monroe, Mich., she attended St. Mary’s Catholic Central High School where she was a two-sport star, lettering in both volleyball and softball, and a three year team captain for the volleyball team. DelPiombo led her volleyball team to the state title her junior season. She was twice named to the Michigan All-State First Team and was tabbed the Region Player of the Year her senior season.
Assistant Coach
ALISON COOKE
Alison Cooke joined the Bowling Green State University volleyball staff in June 2017, coming from Duke University where she had been a Volunteer Assistant Volleyball Coach since March 2015. Cooke received a promotion to Associate Head Coach in March 2023.
Entering her seventh season with the Falcons, Cooke has been a member of a staff that has coached the Orange and Brown to back-to-back MAC Regular Season titles in 2017 and 2018 as well as the MAC Regular Season and MAC Tournament titles in 2020-21 and 2022 that both included an NCAA Tournament appearance. Over her six years with the program, BGSU has a 121-58 record, including a 88-17 MAC standing.
With Bowling Green, Cooke has been working primarily with the Falcons’ defense and passing. Under Cooke's tutelage, libero Kallie Seimet accomplished back-to-back MAC Defensive Player of the Year awards in as well as being named MAC Player of the Year 2017 and 2018, becoming the first athlete in MAC history to do so. In 2021, Julia Walz was named MAC Defensive Player of the Year after a campaign that featured seven MAC East Defensive Player of the Week selections.
2021 marked a monumental season for the Falcons, as junior Petra Indrova earned the program's first AVCA All-American honor. The opposite hitter was named to the AVCA Third Team after a season that included 13 double-doubles and 4.20 kills per set, the 10th-best total in program history. Indrova was a six-rotation player for the Falcons, who finished with a perfect home record for the first time since 1979. Hanna Laube was named Academic All-American that season, the second player in program history to do so. In 2020-21, Laube was named MAC Setter of the Year after logging 11.23 assists per set, the seventh-highest single-season mark in school history. Katelyn Meyer was named to the 2021 All-MAC First Team, the first player in BGVB history to earn First Team honors on four occasions.
In 2016, Isabelle Marciniak was named MAC Freshman of the Year and MAC Setter of the Year, with the Setter of the Year honor being the program's first. Marciniak also earned All-MAC Honorable Mention and MAC All-Tournament Team over the course of her career. She finished her career with 3,196 assists, the second-highest total in program history.
Prior to Bowling Green, Cooke served as a Volunteer Assistant Volleyball Coach at Duke University, beginning in March of 2015. Working alongside Duke’s head coach since 1999 in Jolene Nagel, Cooke and the Blue Devils went 21-9 in 2016, including a 15-5 mark in the Atlantic Coast Conference. In her first season in Durham, Duke went 17-13 (12-8 ACC) and ended the season with a victory over ranked North Carolina.
At Duke, Cooke played a large role in player development, and assisted with practice planning. In addition to those roles, Cooke tracked opponent’s in-match offense. Cooke aided with administrative office duties, as well, on top of organizing summer camps. At Duke, she also assisted with recruiting visits. In addition to her duties with the varsity program, Cooke also served as the men’s club volleyball head coach at Duke.
Cooke has also spent extensive time at the club level, and most recently has spent time as a resource coach with Triangle Volleyball Club in Raleigh, N.C. Cooke worked with the elite 18 teams, running clinics and provided instruction and feedback for player development. Prior to that, she trained and worked private lessons at Carolina Union Volleyball Club.
A standout setter at Wingate University, Cooke led the Bulldogs to three NCAA Elite Eight appearances, and was a two-time AVCA All-American. Cooke averaged 10.50 assists per set across her senior year, setting up an offense that finished in the top 20 nationally in kills per set.
A native of Davidson, N.C., Cooke earned her psychology degree from Wingate in 2014, and she has since completed her master’s degree in coaching and athletic administration from Concordia University Irvine.