Bowman brings tremendous coaching and playing experience to the Blue Knights
Jen Bowman, the new head volleyball coach at Dakota County Technical College, has more than 13 years of coaching experience, most recently as an assistant coach for Bloomington Kennedy High School (2011–2014) and head coach of the Vital Volleyball Club 14-1s (2013). In 2009, Bowman served as an assistant coach for the Augsburg College Auggies. As an assistant coach at the University of St. Thomas, she helped take the Tommies to the 2007 MIAC Conference Championship with a 28–3 record. In 2005, she volunteered as an assistant coach at the University of Minnesota. That year the Gophers made an NCAA Tournament Elite 8 appearance with a 25–8 record. Forty-two players coached by Bowman have gone on to play college volleyball, 16 at the NCAA level.
A native of Maple Grove, Minnesota, Bowman also excelled as an NCAA volleyball player, competing for two seasons for the Northern Illinois Huskies and two seasons for the U of M Gophers. She played briefly for Long Beach State before transferring to Minnesota.
At NIU in 2000, she was named Mid-American Conference Freshman of the Year and American Volleyball Coaches Association Regional Freshman of the Year after setting the university’s single-season record for assists. In 2001, she was named MAC Player of the Year—the first time in conference history a sophomore earned that distinction. She also made First Team All-MAC, AVCA First Team All-Region and the MAC All-Tournament Team. That season Bowman helped lead the Huskies to a MAC championship and was recognized as the MAC Tournament MVP.
At the U of M, Bowman, a setter and defensive specialist, was recognized with Academic All-Big 10 honors her senior season. She also got the chance to play college volleyball with her younger sister, Kelly Bowman Stuntz, who was her teammate at Osseo High School. The sisters played together on the Gopher team that advanced to the NCAA DI Tournament finals, ultimately losing to Stanford and finishing the season ranked #2 in the nation. Jen, the elder sister, went on to play professional beach volleyball for two seasons, 2006 and 2007, on the AVP Pro Beach Tour.
Jen Bowman is excited about taking on head coaching responsibilities for the Blue Knights, who compete at the NJCAA DII level. “I am looking forward to finding athletes who excel on the court and in the classroom,” she said. Bowman is also seeking players with aspirations to transfer after their time at DCTC and go on to play NCAA volleyball. “I’m doing a lot of recruiting right now. My goals for the coming season are to create depth in the lineup and compete in the NJCAA Region 13 Tournament.” The NJCAA DII volleyball season begins in August and runs through November.
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Bowman has a B.S. in Human Resource Development from the U of M and currently resides in Bloomington, Minnesota.
For more details about Jen Bowman’s coaching and playing experience, you can read her full bio at Vital Volleyball Club. You can learn more about the new Blue Knights head coach by reading “Student-Athlete Profile: Senior Setter Jen Bowman” by Steven Geller on the Minnesota Gophers Volleyball website.
For more information about NJCAA DII volleyball at DCTC, visit GoBlueKnights.com or contact:
Cam Stoltz
Athletic Coordinator
Men’s Soccer Head Coach
651-423-8462
