T.J. Shouse did not come to Slippery Rock University looking for a volleyball career.

He found one anyway.

Shouse, 27, went on to be an assistant coach for the SRUwomen's volleyball squad foreight years and was recently named head coach at Tiffin (Ohio)University.

"All of the pieces just fell into place for me,"Shouse said.

Shouse is a graduate of Erie McDowell High School — the lone high school in Erie that offers boys volleyball— and played there for four years.

Upon coming to SRUto major in English-Creative Writing, he discovered the women's program needed an assistant coach.

"I wound up being a volunteer asssistant for four years while I was playing on the men's club team,"Shouse said. "It was invaluable experience."

Shouse helped the men's club team to a No. 16 national ranking in 2001-02. Once he achieved his Bachelor's degree in 2003, he stayed at SRUfor two more years as a graduate assistant coach and wound up getting a master's degree in English Literature in 2005.

But instead of pursuing a job in that field, Shouse remained at SRUas an assistant coach and became the volleyball program's recruiting coordinator.

"I never considered volleyball as a career path until I got deeper into it," he said. "I enjoy the recruiting process, scouting other teams, being on the floor with a team three hours per day.

"It reached the point where I couldn't imagine not doing it. Being able to coach at a solid NCAAwomen's program like Slippery Rock University did wonders for me."

Shouse served under current SRUcoach Laurie Lokash during his tenure there.

Last fall, The Rock finished 24-10 — its best record since 1994 — and reached the NCAATournament for the first time since 2000.

Tiffin competes in the Independent Collegiate Association, a collection of all the Division IIindependent programs in the country.

The Dragons have been a member of the American Mideast Conference, a NAIAleague.

"I'm walking into a great opportunity here," Shouse said. "The volleyball team has finished around .500 each of the past two years, barely missing out on the conference playoffs.

"It's on the brink of being successful and it's up to me to push it over the top."

Shouse said he has two main goals at Tiffin right away:Post a winning record by the end of the regular season and find a solid Division IIconference for the program to call home.

"I'm not looking to go anywhere else for a long time,"he said. "I want to build this program and put my stamp on it, turn the page and steer it into a prosperous future in Division II.

"I'll stay here as long as they'll have me," Shouse added.

Shouse will be assistant sports information director at Tiffin as well as the women's volleyball coach.

And he hasn't given up on writing just yet.

"It's just taken a back seat to my coaching career right now," he said. "Writing short stories and essays ... That's something I'd like to do long-term."

<I>This is one in a series of articles on Slippery Rock University graduates who have moved on to athletic careers elsewhere.</I>