Inductees

Tracy Rietzke had a pretty good idea that coaching was in his future while he was attending college in the 1970s at Kansas Wesleyan College in Salinas, Kansas.

An NAIA All-American basketball player at Kansas Wesleyan, Rietzke led the nation in field goal percentage in his senior year in 1976. His college coach, Randy St. Clair, helped push his star guard into a career in coaching.

“Coaching was something that I was always interested in,” Rietzke said. “My older brother, Tim, influenced me along with Randy St. Clair. I would say Ken Cochran had some influence on me when I helped out as a volunteer assistant men’s basketball coach at Marymount College.”

The decision to become a coach turned out to be a wise move for Rietzke, who retired earlier this year after 32 years at Rockhurst University in Kansas City, Missouri. He ended his career as a college coach with 1,703 career wins and is why the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame proudly inducted Rietzke with the Class of 2020.

Rietzke currently ranks second among active NCAA Division II women’s volleyball coaches in total victories (1,277) and is sixth in all-time winning percentage (.818) among D-II coaches. He also ranks fourth in career wins for all three levels of NCAA women’s volleyball head coaches.

“I think I made a good choice starting at KW,” said Rietzke, who coached women’s volleyball, women’s basketball and softball at KW. “Obviously, it was a huge step going from KW to Rockhurst (in 1988). You never know how that will play out. I never envisioned staying 32 years at Rockhurst. It was obviously a good decision. I think God is your pilot.”

In his first eight years at Rockhurst, Rietzke coached the volleyball and women’s basketball teams. He decided to step away from the women’s basketball job after the Hawks transitioned from the NAIA to NCAA Division II in 1996.

The Rockhurst women’s basketball team recorded a 206-45 record in eight seasons under Rietzke and played in five NAIA national tournaments.

“When Rockhurst went to NCAA-II, I didn’t feel I could coach both sports,” Rietzke said. “There was too much overlap and I wanted to spend quality family time while my daughters were growing up. We competed well in volleyball when we went from NAIA to NCAA D-II. We won 30 or 32 games in a row right after we transitioned to NCAA D-II.”

The Hawks quickly became an NCAA Tournament team after leaving the NAIA. Rockhurst played in five NCAA regional finals between 1998 and 2005. Since 2014, the Hawks went to five more regional finals while bringing home three regional championships in 2015, 2017 and 2019.

“The games that stuck out were the last few years when we went to the Elite Eight and going to the Final Four twice,” said Rietzke, whose teams defeated three higher seeded teams on the road to earn three Elite Eight trips to Tampa; Pensacola, Florida; and Denver.

Rietzke coached the Rockhurst volleyball teams to 1,105 victories in 32 seasons. Since beginning NCAA D-II play in 1998, the Hawks posted a 647-167 record and played in 13 NCAA national tournaments while advancing to the national semifinals in 2017 and 2019.

Regional and conference coaching awards became the norm. His highest honor came in his final season when he was named the 2019 USMC/American Volleyball Coaches Association D-II National Coach of the Year as Rockhurst posted a 33-8 record.

“I’ve had a lot of good assistants and great players  throughout my career,” Rietzke said. “Growing up, I was always very competitive, and it stayed with me the whole time. We have always preached to the players to play hard on every point. You never know when that play you make might turn the whole game around.”

Rietzke had the rare distinction of being featured in Sports Illustrated’s Faces in the Crowd as an athlete (Feb. 23, 1976) and as a coach (Sept. 28, 2010).

Volleyball has been a big part of the Rietzke family.  Rietzke’s wife, Cindy, played college volleyball at Marymount College in Salina, Kansas. Their two daughters played at Rockhurst. Kylie was a setter from 2012-15, while Morgan was an All-American outside hitter from 2013-2016.

“It was definitely a thrill to coach your daughters,” Rietzke said. “The chance to work with young players and see them improve their game, not only on the court but off the court. You have a chance to be a big influence in their lives.”

• Story by John Dodderidge