The only head coach in the nine-year history of the volleyball program at Trinity Valley Community College is leaving.
After leading the program from its infancy in 2010 to a fifth-place finish at the NJCAA tournament this past season, Tosha Spain has submitted her resignation. She has accepted the position of girls' athletic director/head volleyball coach at Eustace High School.
Spain, a 2001 Eustace graduate, will replace her former coach, the legendary Chuck Powers. Powers is retiring after 42 years and more than 900 wins.
"This was a very difficult decision," Spain said. "I love the college and the program we have built. The past nine years have been special.
"In the end, the opportunity to go back home and follow Coach Powers and lead the girls' athletic department was one I couldn't turn down. It's a chance to give back to a place that is extremely special to me.
"I will forever be grateful to the college for the opportunity it gave me to build the program. I've had the privilege of working with some great young ladies and working with dedicated and talented people."
Spain leaves the TVCC volleyball program after compiling a 184-119 record, going 75-19 the past three seasons. Spain's overall head coaching record is 249-167, including her 65-48 mark in three seasons at Athens High School. At Athens, the Lady Hornets made two playoff appearances, advancing once to the regional semifinals.
In Spain's tenure, the Lady Cardinals qualified for the Region XIV Tournament five times (2012, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2018). The Lady Cardinals received an at-large selection to the national tournament this past season, making the most of the opportunity and finishing fifth, including wins against regional champion Tyler and regional runner-up Navarro.
In addition to the first national tournament in school history, the program also produced two All-Americans in Spain's tenure – Diana Giordani (2017) and Juliana Vaz (2018).
Here are the Lady Cardinals' year-by-year records in the Spain era:
2010 – 17-22
2011 – 16-16
2012 – 18-12
2013 – 21-15
2014 – 31-9
2015 – 7-26
2016 – 23-8
2017 – 24-4
2018 – 28-7
Spain was an accomplished player in her own right. After a stellar career for Powers at Eustace, where she was named Most Valuable Player as a senior, she went on to play at Navarro College and Texas A&M University-Commerce. She was a team captain at Texas A&M-Commerce.
Spain was presented the Bobby Fox Award by Texas A&M-Commerce, which is an award presented to an up-and-coming young coach who is a graduate of the college.
Upon graduating from Texas A&M-Commerce with a bachelor of science degree in kinesiology and sports studies, Spain's first coaching job was at Eustace Junior High School as a physical education teacher and head volleyball coach. She also coached basketball and track in the one year she was there before leaving for Athens.
Spain received her master's degree from Lamar University in 2010.
She has two daughters, Harper (7) and Ava (1 month).
Spain's tenure at the college will end upon the conclusion of the annual Lady Cardinal Volleyball Camp in early June.
The search for her replacement will begin immediately.