EAST BERNARD, Texas — Susan Brewer first took up volleyball at East Bernard Junior High. Nearly five decades after starting a coaching career in Bellville, she has reached the top of the Texas high school record book.
Brewer earned her 1,306th career victory against Manor at the Bastrop Tournament in August, becoming the state’s all-time wins leader in high school volleyball. Every one of those wins came while coaching at Bellville High School, where she began the volleyball program in 1977.
Her connection to the sport began in Wharton County. In a profile published by the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor, Brewer recalled learning volleyball in East Bernard and credited several local teachers and coaches with shaping her path. Among them was her volleyball coach, Norma Pullin, who taught her how to teach and lead as well as how to play.
Brewer went on to play volleyball and tennis at Mary Hardin-Baylor, graduating in 1977. She told the university that she approached her time as an athlete with coaching in mind: she wanted to understand the games well enough to teach them to others.
Bellville gave her that opportunity straight out of college. In her first year, she started the school’s volleyball program while also coaching basketball and tennis and serving as cheerleader sponsor. The volleyball program she built has since won nine state championships. Her teams have also finished as state runners-up five times and won 20 regional championships and 39 district or co-district titles.
Brewer’s career has brought recognition beyond Bellville. She was inducted into the Texas Girls Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2019 and the American Volleyball Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2022. She has also been named the Texas Girls Coaches Association’s volleyball coach of the year five times.
The record gives East Bernard a share in a statewide milestone. Brewer learned the game there, found mentors there and carried those lessons into a coaching career spent building one program for generations of players.
Leave a Reply