La Salle University Athletics

Andrew Kroger was named La Salle University head volleyball coach in April 2019 and begins his second season at the helm in 2020-21.

In his first season at the helm, maintained the Explorers recent record of success. The Blue & Gold went 15-14 overall and 8-6 in conference play, with regular season highlights including a 3-2 comeback victory over Villanova and a Senior Day win vs. Saint Louis. Kroger led La Salle back to the A-10 playoffs for the second straight year, tallying a quarterfinal win over George Washington before falling to VCU in the semifinals. The Explorers took it a step further in 2019 as they made their first ever appearance on the national postseason stage, traveling to Liberty for the NIVC.

Kroger helped foster plenty of individual success in 2019. La Salle led the A-10 with eight end-of-season conference awards, including Katie Wood as Setter of the Year and First Team All-Conference, along with Sam Graver also making First Team All-Conference. Kroger oversaw the fruition of Wood becoming La Salle's all-time assists leader and Graver making history as the first Explorer with 400 kills and 400 digs in a season.
 
Previously, Kroger spent four seasons as an assistant under Caitlin Schweihofer prior to being named associate head coach in 2018. The Explorers won 18 games and advanced to the first Atlantic 10 Championship in program history in 2018.
 
"Andrew has done a fantastic job over the last five years, lifting our volleyball program to heights it has not seen before," Bradshaw said. "He filled in admirably as acting head coach on two separate occasions, and has proven he can recruit student-athletes to La Salle that have excelled both on the court and in the classroom. We look forward to continued successes for him and the team in the future."
 
La Salle burst onto the scene in the Atlantic 10 in 2018, compiling the highest win total for a single season since 1991. A-10 Setter of the Year Katie Wood and First Team All-Atlantic 10 honoree Devin Corah led a group of five individuals that earned postseason accolades, helping the Explorers advance to the semifinals of the league championship.
 
In 2017, Kroger was named acting head coach for the final two months of the season, as Schweihofer took a step back during her pregnancy. Dealing with numerous injuries, Kroger and the Explorers posted five wins over that span – including four in the A-10, which set a then-program mark.

"I would like to thank Bill Bradshaw, John Lyons and the rest of the hiring committee for this incredible opportunity," Kroger said. "I appreciate their belief in me to lead our program which has grown by leaps and bounds over the past five years. I am excited to continue working with this outstanding group of student athletes to achieve new milestones both on and off the court."
 
In his first season on campus, Kroger helped the program achieve a nine-game improvement from the previous season. He helped Ashley Felton record 54 block assists in 2014 which was the most in a season for La Salle since 2007.

In his second season at 20th and Olney, Kroger saw Jensen Sharrits recognized on the Atlantic 10 All-Rookie Team, the fourth to be recognized for All-Rookie in team history and saw the team honored with the AVCA Team Academic Award for squads who maintained a 3.30 cumulative average.
 
Kroger worked as an assistant at Villanova for three seasons prior to his move to La Salle. He oversaw the middle blockers and was also responsible for video analysis and tape exchange, as well as event management, team planning and statistics.

During the 2012 season Kroger helped coach a young Wildcats team which received excellent performances from its middles. Freshman Gabby Pethokoukis led the team in blocks and averaged over one block per set while ranking among the BIG EAST leaders in total blocks.
 
Prior to arriving at Villanova, Kroger was an assistant coach at Sycamore High School in Cincinnati and also coached at the Team Z Volleyball Club, where he was head coach for the 15 Navy and 15 Orange squads.
 
Kroger is a 2011 graduate of Xavier, where he was the president of the men's club volleyball team and also played on the squad for three years.