WATERBURY, Conn. -- After back-to-back turnaround seasons for Post University Women's Volleyball, Head Coach Tiffany Verni has been honored with the AVCA's Thirty Under 30 Award, which recognizes up-and-coming coaches in different sectors of the sport who serve in a range of roles, from head coach to volunteer assistant to club director and this year includes women's and men's indoor and beach coaches. Each of the recipients had to be age 30 or under as of Dec. 31, 2025, to qualify for the award.

Verni becomes the first Head Coach in program history to achieve this honor, coming in as the Head Coach at just 24 years old and currently being 28 years old when receiving the award. The Eagles are coming off a 26-win season, going 26-6 overall, which matched the 2016 team for the best win percentage at .812 on the year. The season concluded with the Eagles winning their first outright CACC North Division title since 2018 with a program-best 13-1 record in conference play.

Although they would fall in the CACC Semifinals in five sets to Holy Family University, Verni's squad would get an at-large bid into the NCAA Tournament, the fourth in program history and first in nine years, where they would win their first-ever NCAA Tournament Match in four sets, 3-1, against AIC, before falling to the eventual East Region Champion Bentley University the next day in four sets, 3-1. 

In addition, three players were named to the CSC Academic All-District Team, while several records fell, including the single-season kills record by graduate outside hitter Kristina Peric and the single-season block assists record by junior middle blocker Nuri Shahid-Stevenson. Senior libero Alyssa Groves concluded her career with the most digs in program and conference history at 5,591, as well as the all-time sets played record with 471.

A program record five players were named to the CACC All-Conference Teams, including Peric, who became the second player in program history to be named CACC Player of the Year, while Groves went back-to-back as CACC Defensive Player of the Year. That duo would be named to the D2CCA and AVCA All-East Region First Teams with Peric winning D2CCA East Region Player of the Year, becoming the second player in program history to do so. Peric and Groves also became the first-ever D2CCA All-American First Teamers in school history under Verni's guidance, as well as AVCA All-American Honorable Mentions. 

When Verni took over the team, they were coming off a 10-win season, and now, in back-to-back years, she has led them to 20+ win seasons for the first time since the mid-2010s, as well as their first CACC Championship Game during the 2024 season, which was their first since 2018. Verni's teams have routinely garnered GPAs around the 3.8 mark after previously being around a 2.7 when she began her time at Post. 

Verni stated that her career goals were to achieve this award, as well as on the court to turn Post University into one of the top teams in the East Region in the years to come, and receive national votes for the team's performance. She also hopes to become the most winningest coach in program history at Post University and reach 100 career wins before turning 30. She currently sits at 64 in her career, with the all-time record being 185 in 14 seasons set by Mike Brienza.

Off the court, she has served as the SAAC advisor throughout her time at Post while also helping run the Special Olympics Basketball Tournament held at the school over the last few years. She was a pivotal part in implementing the Battle of the Classes competition on campus and had volunteered her time with the Husky Volleyball Club in Connecticut, along with local club teams in the 15-2s and top 18s. She was a 2019 NCAA Woman of the Year nominee in 2019, won the ECC Community and Character Award as a student-athlete, and played three years at NYIT in college.