Bobbi Petersen and the Journey to 500

It seemed like a routine win for Bobbi Petersen and the Panthers Friday night, defeating the Indian State Sycamores 3-0, but the win cemented Coach Petersen in the record books, clinching her 500th career win.

Petersen becomes only the third MVC volleyball coach to captures 500 or more wins. She bolsters her already impressive resume of ranking in the top 10 of active Division 1 coaches in winning percentages and two NCAA Sweet 16 appearances. But for Coach Petersen, volleyball has never been about becoming the winningest coach or stacking up wins. It's about the journey along the way.

"I think about all the people that were on this journey and the things that we did, things that might not even result in a win but it was something really special that happened along the journey," said Petersen. "We've had some successful teams that have done well even some Sweet 16 teams. But when they come back, that's not what they're talking about. They're talking about all the other things that were part of the journey."

Petersen also discusses the importance of the relationships she's built throughout that journey.

"The best part of this has been all the amazing, wonderful people that have been a part of this program. I have had the opportunity to work with them and call them my student-athletes first and then friends later," Petersen said.

"It's the journey that you're taking throughout the season, being able to have dedicated, driven people that want to come in and put it to the tradition that so many people have built year in and year out. We tried to bring those people together and to be the best possible team we could be that season."

Petersen's dominance at UNI dates back to her time as a player from 1986-1989. As a student-athlete, she was a three-time first-team all-MVC conference selection and two-time first-team all-region pick.

Petersen took over head coaching duties in 2001 replacing the winningest coach in UNI history, Iradge Ahrabi-Fard, whom she played and coached under for a decade. She needs just four more wins to pass her mentor and former coach in the UNI record book.

Petersen reflects on how thankful she is of Ahrabi-Fard and all that he has done for her to develop as a coach and person.

"I wouldn't have this opportunity without Irage, he's the one that recruited me as a student-athlete and was a huge mentor for me during that time. I owe so much to who I am to him," Petersen said. "I learned a lot of different things under him. He gave me so many amazing opportunities to be able to pursue a coaching career because, to be honest, that's not the route I wanted to go down. But his encouragement led me to think about this career."

Ahrabi-Fard built a culture of excellence within the UNI volleyball program, but Coach Petersen sustains it. Since taking over in 2001, Petersen has led the Panthers to 20 or more wins 16 of the last 17 seasons.

"We have high expectations within our program. It starts with recruiting the right type of student-athletes, student-athletes that buy-in and believe in what we are doing. If they understand that and put in the hard work, it will all be worth it," said Petersen. "We have to buy into having the ability to go out and work hard every single day, no matter what it is that we're doing, whether it's on the court or the classroom or in the community. That's what we've been built on."

Petersen credits her assistant coaches and upperclassmen for buying into the tradition of hard work and setting that example. She mentions that she and her coaches would never ask their athletes to do something they would not do themselves.

Petersen's student-athletes have excelled off the court as well. During her tenure at UNI, over 34 of her players have been named first-team MVC Scholar-Athletes. She emphasizes that college is not all about playing volleyball, it's about working hard and developing as a person.

"Volleyball is a small piece of who these women are. They must make other things a priority in their life other than volleyball, and we must be examples of that" Petersen said. "We are driven in our job, but we have families and we have other priorities that we can also stop. So yes, there has to be balanced in your life."

Petersen hopes that when people look back at her legendary coaching career at UNI, they don't look at her win tally or number of NCAA tournament appearances, they look at how she treated her players and the lessons she learned from them.

"What I hope for is that it wasn't just about the sport of volleyball, that they had the opportunity to really grow and develop as an individual and also had the opportunity to understand what it is to be selfless and have the ability to give up yourself for the better of the team," Petersen said. "I hope they remember having a staff who always cared about them and who were driven to help them be successful in all areas of their lives, not just on the volleyball court."

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Bobbi Petersen and the Journey to 500

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Bobbi Petersen and the Journey to 500

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