Former Missouri State indoor player Terri Del Conte was announced as beach volleyball head coach on June 7, 2017, and owns a three-year record of 23-30.
Del Conte’s first season saw the Bears field a competitive club, finishing with a 7-10 record in 2018. Three separate pairs won at least eight matches over the course of the season’s 17 duals, and MSU tallied a a four-match winning streak from March 12-14 in California. The Bears also put on a show in their home debut on March 22, winning all five matches in straight sets for a sweep of Ottawa College.
Missouri State posted a winning record in the program’s second season, going 13-11 overall and picking up the first four Division I victories in school history. The Bears owned a .634 pairs winning percentage in the Nos. 3-5 flights on the year, and had seven individuals win at least 10 matches on the season to exceed the team leader from year one.
The Bears showed promise early in Del Conte’s third season before the 2020 campaign was cancelled in mid-March in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. MSU won three of its first five matches before finishing 3-9 against a difficult schedule that included six teams ranked 17th or higher. The Bears picked up four pairs wins against those ranked clubs and nearly sprung the upset on No. 15 Arizona in the season opener.
Del Conte has an extensive professional beach volleyball background, and currently holds a AAA rating in the California Beach Volleyball Association. She is also a competitor on the AVP Tour, and is a top-level player on the Endless Summer Volleyball Tour.
Additionally, Del Conte has been the owner of Center Balance Training since 2011, and has coached numerous club and community volleyball teams in the Los Angeles area since graduating from MSU with a media studies degree in 2009.
Originally from Long Beach, Calif., Del Conte enjoyed a two-year playing career at Missouri State after transferring from junior college prior to the 2007 season. She ranks fifth in school history with a career average of 3.83 digs per set, while her 605 digs as a senior rank third on MSU’s single-season chart.
Del Conte led the Bears in aces both seasons and served 70 in her career, was a team captain and Missouri Valley Conference Scholar-Athlete honorable mention pick in 2008, and helped MSU to the NCAA Tournament both seasons on campus. Her career high of 36 digs on Nov. 8, 2008, remains the No. 5 single-match total in school history, while her 973 career digs are the second-most for any MSU player in their first two seasons.
