MINNEAPOLIS -- April Elsbernd has resigned her position as head coach of the Augsburg University volleyball team to take the head coaching position at her alma mater, Coe College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, the university announced on Thursday.
Elsbernd was hired in March 2024 as the 11th head coach in Augsburg volleyball history, after spending the prior 15 seasons as head coach at the University of Dubuque (Iowa). She has a 242-252 collegiate coaching record.
"While I am excited for the opportunity to coach at my alma mater, I am sad to leave the university," Elsbernd said. "I want to thank Athletic Director Jeff Swenson for the opportunity and his leadership, my colleagues for their support and friendship, and the student-athletes for their commitment and dedication to the team. Auggie volleyball is a very special program, and I am extremely grateful for my time at Augsburg."
Elsbernd led the Auggies to a 16-14 record and 7-4 mark in Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play in the 2024 season, as the Auggies earned a berth in the MIAC postseason playoffs for the 11th time since the 2009 campaign.
In 2024, Auggies Bri Van Well (SR, Woodbury, Minn./Woodbury HS) and Ava Carlson (FY, Cloquet, Minn./Cloquet HS) earned All-MIAC honors, with Carlson named Rookie of the Year for both the MIAC and AVCA Division III Region 9. Van Well was named to the AVCA Division III All-Region 9 Team and became the 15th player in Augsburg volleyball history to earn AVCA All-America honors, named as a Division III Honorable Mention selection. Eleven Auggies earned Academic All-MIAC honors, with four earning College Sports Communicators Academic All-District recognition.
A 2003 alumnae of Coe, Elsbernd was a four-year letterwinner for the Kohawks, and earned Academic All-Iowa Conference honors in 2001 and 2002. She received her bachelor's degree in 2003 from Coe with majors in sociology, public relations and speech communications. She She earned her Master's Degree in Sport Administration from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse in 2007, and earned her Doctorate of Education in Educational Leadership from National Louis University (Ill.) in 2020.