Hi Poly Volleyball Community! 

My name is Dana Fulwider. I grew up in Rialto, CA and graduated from Eisenhower High School in 1993. I played club volleyball for 2 years for Mile High VBC in Lake Arrowhead, then for Asics Tiger in Santa Fe Springsmy senior year. I was recruited by Louisiana State University, Michigan State University, Santa Clara, and ended up at University of Virginia. After receiving ACC All-Freshmen team honors, MVP and All-ACC honors, but finishing last place in the ACC for two years, I decided I needed a change. I contacted the top 20 teams in the country, and from the responses I got, I chose to join the team at Long Beach State, which was a life-long dream of mine. 

At Long Beach, I trained as a setter under my idol, Debbie Green, who was the setter for the 1984 and 1988 Olympic teams. I red-shirted my first year at Long Beach, at which time Misty May became the setter. For the next two years I played as a back-up setter and right side player. In my senior year, 1997, we rose to #1 in the nation. We breezed through the NCAA tournament but ultimately fell to Stanford in the Final Four. (Not that I’m still bitter or anything…)

After college, I still couldn’t imagine a life without volleyball. So I contracted with an agent and went to play professionally with a team in Austria. I played there for four years, leading my team, SSK Feldkirch, to the finals of the Austrian cup, as well as the 2nd round of the European cup, defeating the Netherlands, Israel, but losing to Spain. 

I moved back to California in 2002 and began teaching in 2005 at Rancho Verde High School. I coached there from 2007-2009, and 2017. 2018-19 is my first year teaching here at Riverside Poly High School. I am so excited to be teaching and coaching in the community that we live in. My husband Tory and I have 5 children all-together. Our two littlest ones live here in Riverside with us and attend Alcott Elementary. For us, this is a family endeavor. Tory is so supportive and as a collegiate athlete, understands the importance of team and unity. The little girls are so excited to play with “the big girls” on the team, and can’t wait to be Poly Bears themselves. 

We want to build a strong program here at Poly. We want to build a legacy. I am so excited for you and your daughters to be on this journey with me, and I look forward to meeting each and every one of you as we begin practices and take the first steps to success. 

We are Poly Volleyball. This means more.