Jerry Abraham directs the Madonna University volleyball program with a quiet yet reassuring confidence that is the unmistakable life blood of one of the nation’s most successful programs.

It is a confidence not gleaned from the shine of numerous trophies and accolades bestowed upon the coach and the program, though no one would question if it was. In 18 seasons at Madonna, Abraham has collected wins at a staggering pace. Never having posted less than 29 wins in a season, he earned his 600th career victory at Madonna, on September 7th, 2002, with a win over Saginaw Valley State (only the third NAIA coach to reach the milestone) and has firmly entrenched the Crusaders among the elite programs in the nation.

Abraham does not reflect on past successes. “Fans can get spoiled very quickly in athletics and that’s a problem,” Abraham said. “It’s not easy to be successful in anything when people get accustomed to specific results, it sometimes loses its effect on the players and they forget what it really takes to succeed and how important the journey really should be to their development.”

Instead, Abraham addresses each new team and season on its own terms and his confidence lies in the ability and work ethic of his current players and coaching staff.

“I’m not much of a believer in predicting a team’s level of success,” said Abraham. “I can only state that we’re going to do our best. If we’re good enough to win matches then we’re going to win matches, but if we lose it’s not going to be because we didn’t work hard and it’s not going to be because we rested on our program’s previous laurels.”

For a good example of this statement, look no further than the 2003 season. Following the 2002 run to the “Final Four” the Crusaders had to deal with the loss of a pair of All-Americans, only to return to San Diego and a spot in the National Quarterfinals. The 2003 saw Madonna capture its second-consecutive perfect WHAC regular season (and seventh straight conference title), becoming the first team in conference history to pull off the feat. In addition, the 2003 Crusaders extended their home winning streak to 33 straight games (before falling to Cornerstone in the WHAC tournament), eclipsing the previous standard set from 1991-92.

During the first 17 seasons of Madonna volleyball the team has never finished below .500 and has averaged nearly 43 wins per year. Abraham has amassed 681 wins and a .775 career winning percentage. Under his watch six Crusader squads (‘93, ‘95, ’96, '00, ‘02 & ‘03) have advanced to the NAIA National Championship Tournament. Additionally, Madonna has been ranked in the NAIA Top 25 at some point during every season since 1993. Last year the Crusaders remained in the NAIA top 25 poll every week during the season, closing it out with a #8 final ranking before the post-season tournament, the highest final ranking in team history.

While the team’s goals are the most important to Abraham and his staff, his teams have seen their fare share of individual accolades as a result of success. Abraham’s teams have produced seven NAIA First Team All-America’s, five Second Team All-America’s, three Third Team All-America’s and five Honorable Mention All-America’s. Also, Crusader volleyball players have been named NAIA All-America Scholar-Athletes 11 times in Abraham’s career.

Abraham’s philosophy of a Madonna Volleyball family is readily apparent in the continued involvement of former players. Coach Abraham has built a solid program both on and off the court.

Madonna joined the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference (WHAC) in 1997 and Abraham promptly guided his squad to both the conference regular season and playoff championships in 1997 and 1998. The Crusaders again won the regular season championship in 1999 before dropping their first-ever WHAC postseason match. Responding to this adversity, the Crusaders rebounded to win both the WHAC regular-season and tournament titles again in 2000. In 2001, Abraham again coached the Crusaders to the regular-season WHAC title.

The most successful season yet came in 2002 when Abraham guided his team to a 48-4 record and a berth in the NAIA Final Four. The Crusaders advanced to the NAIA National Semi-finals, falling to Houston Baptist, but finished the season as the third best team in the country.

In each of Madonna's seven seasons in the WHAC, Abraham has guided his troops to an outright or shared conference championship. The Crusaders are 67-5 in regular season WHAC play and have dropped just two conference postseason matches. From 2002 to 2003, Abraham’s troops pulled off one of the most impressive runs in WHAC history, not losing a singe game en route to the perfect season.

Abraham has been named NAIA District 23 Coach-of-the-Year three times, Great Lakes Sectional Coach-of-the-Year twice, WHAC Coach-of-the-Year twice and Great Lakes Region Coach-of-the-Year twice and last season added NAIA Region VIII Coach-of-the-Year honors as well. Additionally, in 1994 Abraham took over the softball program at Madonna and led the Crusaders to the NAIA World Series - meaning he took two separate teams to the NAIA National Tournament during the same academic year.

Prior to his days at Madonna, Abraham compiled a 270-70 record at Bishop Borgess High School in Redford, Michigan. His Borgess teams won five district titles, three regional crowns, three Catholic League championships and finished Class A state runner-up in 1986 and Class B state runner-up in 1988.

Abraham has been named NAIA District 23 Coach-of-the-Year three times, Great Lakes Sectional Coach-of-the-Year twice, WHAC Coach-of-the-Year twice and Great Lakes Region Coach-of-the-Year twice and last season added NAIA Region VIII Coach-of-the-Year honors as well. Additionally, in 1994 Abraham took over the softball program at Madonna and led the Crusaders to the NAIA World Series - meaning he took two separate teams to the NAIA National Tournament during the same academic year.

Prior to his days at Madonna, Abraham compiled a 270-70 record at Bishop Borgess High School in Redford, Michigan. His Borgess teams won five district titles, three regional crowns, three Catholic League championships and finished Class A state runner-up in 1986 and Class B state runner-up in 1988.

He has been named to the Bishop Borgess High School Hall of Fame as well as the Detroit Catholic League Hall of Fame.

Abraham earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Eastern Michigan University (1976) with a major in Physical Education, a minor in English and Health Science and an Elementary Teaching Certificate. He went on to earn his master’s degree in Guidance and Counseling, also from Eastern Michigan. Currently, Abraham is a full-time middle school Guidance Counselor in Taylor, MI and is also the Director of the Crusader Juniors AAU Volleyball program.



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