Saturday, December 15, 2012
PORTALES, N.M.— Eastern New Mexico University Athletic Director Dr. Jeff Geiser has announced the hiring of long time Zia assistant coach, Sia Poyer as the new head volleyball coach at ENMU. Poyer has served as the head volleyball coach at Valdosta State, for the last eight years, after a 14-year stint as the assistant coach at Eastern. He becomes the eighth head coach in the history of the Zia program and succeeds his former mentor, Mike Maguire.
“I feel very honored and grateful for the opportunity to be the next head coach for the Zia volleyball program,” said Poyer. “Thank you to Dr. Gamble, Dr. Geiser and the search committee for their hard work. My family and I are ready to come back to Eastern New Mexico University and the Portales community. I'm super excited about getting Zia volleyball back to being one of the elite teams in the LSC and back to the NCAA Tournament. I also wanted to say thank you to (Valdosta State athletic director) Mr. Rinehard and the great folks at Valdosta State University for my eight wonderful years as the head volleyball coach at VSU.”
“I’m excited and honored to be the next head coach here at Eastern New Mexico,” said Poyer.” I want to thank Dr. Geiser and the search committee for their efforts. I am looking forward to coming back home and getting things rolling.”
Over Poyer’s 14 seasons at ENMU, the squad posted a 187-81 record. The highlight of his tenure came during the 2004 season, when the Zias reached the NCAA Division II Southwest Regional Tournament and took a thrilling five-set decision from Mesa State, in the opening round. Eastern also won two regular-season LSC titles and a conference tournament crown, over that span.
Poyer posted a record of 112-119 over his eight seasons at Valdosta State, wrapped up with three consecutive winning seasons. Following the 2012 season, the Blazers four All-Gulf South Conference selections tied for the most for any team in the league. Poyer has guided eight players to all-conference honors over the last two seasons. Poyers’ charges posted a 21-11 mark with a 7-3 GSC mark in 2011, the best during his tenure.
As a first-year head coach in 2005, Poyer guided the Blazers to 10 wins, after the squad posted four-win campaigns in both 2003 and 2004. The program’s 10 win was its most since a 15-win season in 2002. The following season, the team exploded for a 21-15 record and earned a berth in the GSC tournament. When the season closed, VSU had set records in a number of categories, including kills, digs and blocks.