Rob Machan

Rob Machan is the Head Women's Volleyball Coach at Sacred Heart University.

Rob Machan took over the head coaching reigns of the Sacred Heart University women's volleyball program in 2007 and has molded the team into a Northeast Conference powerhouse.

During an abbreviated 2020-21 season that was played in spring, Machan led the Pioneers to an undefeated 10-0 record in conference play. Sacred Heart nearly swept the end of the year awards with Machan earning Coach of the Year for the fourth time (2009, 2010, 2019, 2020-21). Junior Sarah Ciszek was named NEC Offensive and Setter of the Year while Dominque Felix captured Rookie of the Year.

The 2022 season marked Machan's sixth with 20+ victories, as he led the Pios to a 21-10 mark overall and 12-2 mark in NEC play. Ciszek made history following the campaign, as she became the first five-time NEC Setter of the Year, in addition to winning Player of the Year honors for the second consecutive season. She also became the first player in program history to claim AVCA All-America Honorable Mention status.

Machan led the Pioneers to their second consecutive NEC regular season championship in 2023 behind an 11-3 mark in league play. SHU went 12-15 overall. Machan helped first year setter Gaby Zovko win Setter and Rookie of the Year honors, becoming the first player in the conference to accomplish that feat since Ciszek in 2018.

Postseason accolades have become the standard at Sacred Heart under Machan’s leadership. Ciszek is the fifth Pioneer to earn Player of the Year while winning Setter of the Year for the third year in a row. She added Sacred Heart’s first AVCA All-Region accolade in five years. Felix’s award gave SHU five Rookie of the Year honors. In addition, Sacred Heart has had 26 All-NEC selections.

The Pioneers took the NEC Tournament crown in 2019 after going 20-12 in the regular season. Sacred Heart swept in-state rival Central Connecticut State in the tournament finale. The Pioneers lost to top-ranked Baylor in the first round of the tournament.

The Pioneers returned to the NEC Tournament Championship match for a fifth time in 2018. Ciszek won the first of five consecutive NEC Setter of the Year honors as well as being named Rookie of the Year.

Sacred Heart won the NEC regular-season championship again in 2016, after going 13-1 in conference (22-8 overall). Sarah Krufka won her second straight NEC Player of the Year nod, while Ana Gonzales was named NEC Libero of the Year and Machan won his third NEC Coach of the Year award.

In 2015, Krufka won the first of back-to-back NEC Player of the Year honors. Krufka was also named the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Offensive Player of the Year. She tied the all-time SHU record (most in the rally score era) with 33 kills against FDU in a 5-set win on Oct. 25. Krufka earned AVCA Player of the Week honors for her effort against FDU for the first time in program history.

SHU went 27-8 the following season and was back in the NCAA Tournament. That year the Pioneers became the first NEC school to win a set in the NCAA Tournament against a ranked team as they fell in four sets to No. 11 Stanford. In 2011, Jessica Colberg was named the NEC Libero of the Year. Kim Roleder was tabbed NEC Tournament MVP and set the SHU all-time single-season kill record with 497.

In 2010, Sacred Heart won the first of two-straight titles with a school-record 29-7 mark, the first NEC regular-season and tournament titles in the program's history. SHU great Courtney Kidd Kadlubek was named NEC Setter of the Year for a second time and was tabbed Player of the Year, becoming the first Pioneer to win that award. She was as also named NEC Tournament MVP and won the Sacred Heart Athletic Director Award . That year, Courtney was No. 7 in the NCAA in assists per set and set the all-time Sacred Heart assists record with 4,668. In addition to Kidd Kadlubek's honors Dianis Mercado was named NEC Rookie of the Year, a program first, and Machan won his second straight NEC Coach of the Year award.

Just three years after taking over the program, the Pioneers posted 23 victories in 2009. After collecting 23 wins, Machan was named the NEC Coach of the Year for the first time, and he helped guide Kidd Kadlubek to NEC Setter of the Year honors, which marked the first major-award winner during his SHU tenure.

It took Machan just two seasons to lead the Pioneers to the program's first ever winning season in 2008, when the team finished 18-12 overall.

Machan spent five seasons as an assistant coach at the University of Southern California where he helped the Trojans win back-to-back National Championships in 2002 and 2003. USC made four appearances in the NCAA Final Four and captured a trio of Pac-10 titles. He coached 14 All-Americans and four Olympians, including April Ross who won a gold medal in beach volleyball at the Tokyo Olympics.

Machan also served as the men's volleyball head coach from 2009-11. In his first season he led the Pioneers to an 11-11 overall record, finishing at a .500 winning percentage for the first time in five seasons.

In 2010, the team finished with a record of 18-11, which is still the highest win total in the history of the program. The 2010 team set the all-time SHU men’s volleyball records for wins (18), kills, (1,547), assists (1,417), digs (1,261), blocks (336) and aces (170).

In 2011, the team finished 13-9. Enzo Mackenzie was named to the All-EIVA Second Team. The first time a men’s player was named to an All-Conference Team.

Following his stint at USC, Machan spent two years as an assistant coach in at Azusa Pacific University, where he helped guide the Cougar program back to the NAIA Tournament in 2005 for the first time since 2000. Azusa then matched that feat again in 2006, marking the first time in school history the Cougars received back-to-back bids to the tournament.

With nearly than 30 years of coaching experience, Machan has excelled at every level. He founded the Long Beach Volleyball Club in 1986 and Power/Asics Nova Volleyball Club in 1995. He coached Long Beach Club for six seasons, worked with the Magnum Volleyball Club for two years and then spent five years with Power/Asics Nova. Starting in 1991, his club teams earned medals in the Junior Olympic National Open Tournament nine times, including three gold.

Machan earned his bachelor’s degree in English from USC. He also owns a master’s degree in Physical Education from Azusa Pacific University. He and his wife Christy have three children – Danielle, Joshua and Matthew. Matthew is a member of the SHU men’s soccer team.

Machan Year-By-Year