Hiram College Athletic Director Todd W. Hibbs announced on Tuesday the appointment of Kevin Kustura as the third head coach of the Hiram Terriers men's volleyball program. Kustura joins the Terriers from Trinity College in Hartford, Conn., where he served as the assistant women's volleyball coach and assistant strength and conditioning coach this past year.
In his lone season with the Bantams, Kustura implemented and controlled a team blocking system, helping Trinity improve their blocks per set from 1.03 to 1.77. Four Bantams also earned New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) All-Academic Team recognition under Kustura, while the entire team earned the American Volleyball Coaches Association's (AVCA) Team Academic Award.
Prior to joining Trinity College, Kustura served as a graduate assistant coach with both the men's and women's volleyball programs at Wittenberg University in Springfield, Ohio from 2018-19.
During his two years with the men's volleyball program, Kustura helped the Tigers to their first winning season in 2018, and the best winning percentage in school history, an Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference (AMCC) regular-season championship and a second-place finish at the AMCC Conference Tournament in 2019.
And with the women's volleyball program in 2018, Kustura helped coach the Tigers to a 27-3 record, including a perfect, 8-0 record in North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) play, a NCAC Conference Championship and a 2018 NCAA Division III Sweet Sixteen berth. In addition, four Tigers were named AVCA DIII All-Americans during Kustura's time at Wittenberg.
Previously, Kustura also spent a season as a graduate assistant women's volleyball coach at St. Mary's University in San Antonio, Texas, helping coach a Rattlers' team that won the Heartland Conference Tournament and made their first NCAA Division II Women's Volleyball Tournament appearance since 2011 in 2017. The Rattlers finished second in the Heartland Conference in the regular season during Kustura tenure, increasing their winning percentage by over 100 points.