RAPID CITY – Northwestern coach Nora Groft was inducted in the South Dakota Volleyball Coaches Hall of Fame during the state tournament in Rapid City on Saturday night.
Groft was presented the award by her former coach Kathy Graves.
Here is a bio of Groft’s coaching career that was read during the award presentation:
Nora Groft, 665-93 (.88), has spent 28 years in the Northwestern volleyball program, serving as the head coach for the past 22 years.
The Wildcats have won nine state championships (2020, 2019, 2017, 2016, 2011, 2006, 2005, 2004, 2003), two runner-up finishes (2018, 2008), and two consolation championships (2022, 2002) during Groft’s tenure, earning her a spot in the South Dakota Volleyball Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2023.
A 2018 National Volleyball Coach of the Year Finalist for the National High School Athletic Coaches Association, Groft received the South Dakota Volleyball Coach of the Year award in 2017 and 2006, the South Dakota Sportswriters Association Girls’ Prep Coach of the Year in 2020 and 2017, the Aberdeen American News Volleyball Coach of the Year in 2016, and the AVCA Region 7 Volleyball Coach of the Year in 2020 and 2019. She received Region I Coach of the Year honors in 2017, 2016, 2008, 2005, 2004, 2003, and 2002 and served as the North All-Star head coach in 2017 and 2008 and assistant coach in 2019 and 2005.
The Wildcats received the Adrenaline Volleyball Team of the Year Award in 2020 and the South Dakota Sportswriters Association Prep Girls Team of the Year in 2019 when her team went undefeated, 41-0.
Groft is past president of the South Dakota Volleyball Coaches Association, served two terms as the Class B Representative on the South Dakota High School Activities Association Volleyball Advisory Committee, and currently serves on the In and Out-of-Season Advisory Committee.
Prior to being head coach, Groft served as an assistant coach for six years under Hall of Fame head coach Kathy Graves, winning state championships in 2001, 2000, and 1999. Groft received Class B Assistant Coach of the Year honors in 2001 and 2000.
A former Wildcat setter, Groft played on the first Northwestern volleyball team to advance to the state tournament and earned first-team all-state honors in 1992.
Groft teaches English and serves as athletic director at Northwestern High School, earning her CAA in 2023. She and her husband, James, have four grown children: Isaac, Peyton, Madalyn, and Samuel.
