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Jim Barnes begins his second season as the head volleyball coach at the University of Wyoming in 2003. He was named head coach on Dec. 19, 2001 and became the tenth head volleyball coach in Cowgirl history. It was a very successful first season for Barnes, as he helped the Cowgirls to one of their top finishes in several years. They recorded 20 victories in 2002, the most since 1989, which also included an 11-match winning streak. It was the first time since 1983 that a first year head coach had won 20-matches. His 2002 team also collected four tournament Championships at host schools Auburn, Central Michigan, Cornell Unviersity and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. On Oct. 18, 2002, the Cowgirls defeated the then 16th ranked Utah Utes, in Laramie, 3-0. It was the first time since Nov. 1, 1997, when both teams were members of the WAC, that Wyoming had defeated the Utes and the 23rd time in the series history. Prior to Wyoming, Barnes was the head coach at Lamar University (Beaumont, Texas) for six seasons. During that time, he posted an overall record of 128-71, which included a 26-5 mark, a Southland Conference Championship and Barnes earning Southland Conference Coach of the Year honors in 2001. Four Lady Cardinals also earned All-Conference honors. Barnes guided LU to 24 victories in 2000, which was the most since 1993, and picked up his 100th career coaching win along the way. He also led the Lady Cardinals to the finals of the Southland Conference Tournament, just one victory away from a berth in the NCAA Tournament. In the tournament semifinals that year, Lamar knocked off undefeated regular-season champion Southwest Texas and ended the nation’s longest winning streak at 23-matches. In four years in the Southland Conference, he posted 86 wins and earned induction into the Tachikara Victory Club. Prior to that Lamar was a member of the Sun Belt Conference. In 1997 after being picked to finish sixth in the coaches preseason poll, Lamar finished with an 8-1 regular season conference record and earned a Sun Belt Co-Championship. The Lady Cards made the finals of the Sun Belt Tournament before falling to preseason favorite Arkansas-Little Rock. Barnes, who in only his second season was named the Sun Belt Conference Coach of the Year in 1997, also led the Lady Cardinals to a victory at Arkansas State and thus ended the nation’s longest conference regular-season winning streak at 54-matches. In his first season at Lamar, he inherited a team that finished 13-22 the year before and lost two All-Sun Belt Conference performers. With a team that started no seniors and two freshmen, they managed to win both the NSU Tournament and the Stephen F. Austin Invitational, as well as recording a 20-win season. The Sulphur (La.) native took over the Lamar program after spending six seasons as an assistant coach at his alma mater McNeese State. While there he was involved in several areas of the program including scheduling, recruiting, game preparation, travel and other day-to-day operations. In 1993, McNeese posted what was then its best finish in school history at 25-7 and finished as the Southland Conference runner-up. The 1994 squad posted a 22-7 mark and earned MSU’s first-ever regional ranking. Barnes earned his bachelor of science degree in health and human performance from McNeese State in 1994 and completed his master’s degree in 1996 from MSU as well. He is married to the former Tracy Pittman and the couple has two daughters Brooke Aidan and Jenna Grace. |
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