Coach Lawler begins his third season with the Women’s Volleyball program at Golden West. Lawler comes from Cal State L.A. where he has spent the last 13 seasons as head coach. He guided Cal State L.A. to a 253-104 record, including an NCAA Division II Pacific Region championship and national Final Four finish in 2005.

Under Lawler’s rein, Cal State L.A. have qualified for the NCAA playoffs in ten of the past 13 years as and captured three California Collegiate Athletic Association titles. Lawler was named the 2005 Pacific Region Coach of the Year by the American Volleyball Coaches’ Association and he has also been named the CCAA Coach of the Year twice in voting done by the conference coaches.

Lawler’s teams have won conference titles in 1999, 2000 and 2005. Cal State L.A. has also reached the NCAA playoffs in eight of the past nine years and posted 11 consecutive winning seasons. During the last 11 years, Cal State L.A. has won nearly three-fourths of its conference matches, finished with 20 or more wins six times and 18 or more wins nine times. In one of the toughest conferences in the nation, Cal State L.A. has finished in the top-three in the CCAA seven times in that span. The Golden Eagles have also finished the season ranked in the AVCA national Top-25 eight times in the past 11 seasons.

Lawler came to Golden West in 2009 after serving as the head coach to Cal State L.A. for 13 years. Prior to Cal State L.A., Lawler was top assistant coach for the men’s volleyball program at Pepperdine and legendary coach Marv Dunphy. Lawler’s primary responsibilities included recruiting, game and practice preparation and scouting. Pepperdine finished ranked among the nation’s top-10 teams in each of Lawler’s three seasons with the program.

Internationally, Lawler was an assistant coach at the 1994 and 1995 U.S. Olympic Festivals, earning one gold (1994) and one bronze (1995) medal. During the summer of 1999, he served as an assistant for the U.S. Junior National Team that competed at the World Championships in Canada and finished eighth in the world.

In Head Coach Bill Lawler’s 13 Seasons As CSULA Head Coach:

274 wins (.710 winning percentage, 21.1 wins per year)
10 NCAA Playoff Appearances, 9 in last 10 years
51 All-CCAA Player Awards
16 All-West Region Player Awards
7 All-America Player Awards
3 CCAA Players of the Year
Cal State L.A. is only CCAA volleyball team to go 30-0 in regular season (2000)
Cal State L.A. is only CCAA volleyball team to go 22-0 in conference play during a single season (2000)