Stockton Athletics mourns the loss of former volleyball coach Eric Illjes, who passed away over Memorial Day weekend due to cancer. Illjes was instrumental in building the Stockton volleyball program, first as an assistant coach under Sue Newcomb for six seasons before succeeding Newcomb as head coach in 1999.
 
Illjes was the head coach of the Ospreys for seven seasons from 1999-2005, posting an impressive 157-90 overall record (.636 winning percentage). He was selected NJAC Coach of the Year three times (1999, 2000, 2005) and led the Ospreys to 20 or more victories in six of his seven seasons as head coach.
 
Illjes steered Stockton to NJAC championships and NCAA Tournament berths in 1999 and 2000, his first two seasons as the head coach. The NCAA tournament appearance in 1999 was the program's first. Illjes led Stockton a step further in 2000 when the Ospreys topped King's College (Pa.) in the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional for the program's first-ever NCAA Tournament victory.
 
"To play for someone so knowledgeable in the sport and someone who loved the game as much as I did, made me want to be a better player," said Stockton Athletics Hall of Famer Whitney (Verduin) Drown, who was a two-time NJAC Player of the Year and 2002 NJAC Rookie of the Year in four seasons playing for Illjes.
 
"I can't help but keep picturing coach's warm smile from the sideline. He was always so supportive and proud of the players that he coached. He truly made Stockton my home away from home. He was my on-campus dad, always looking after me both on and off the court. For that, I will always be so grateful for Eric and will cherish our memories together forever," Drown added.
 
Stockton went 152-75 (.670 winning percentage) in the six years from 1993-98 that Illjes served as an assistant coach under Newcomb. The 1996 squad won the program's first NJAC title and set a school record with 32 victories that remains to this day, having been tied by the 2015 team but never topped.
 
Illjes resigned in December 2005 and was succeeded by current Stockton head coach Allison Walker. He remained connected to the program in the years that followed by hosting the Ospreys at his Ocean City residence for breakfast following their annual preseason run on the boardwalk.
 
"As my coach, I've never grown more as a player. He challenged me and pushed me to be the player I was then and in the future," said Alicia Trombley, who played for Illjes in 2001-02 and now serves as Associate Director of Development at Stockton. "He was a wonderful coach, and even when not coaching, a part of the Stockton culture and family."