Donna Palivec
Volleyball Coach
Bemidji State University
Donna Palivec had an immediate impact when she became Bemidji State’s head volleyball coach in 1994. By the end of her second season, the Beavers recorded more wins than they had in six years, finishing 19-17. The team topped that in 1997 by going 21-12, and its 25-7 record in 1999 was the most wins for BSU volleyball since a 28-17 season in 1989. Palivec, who ranks second on BSU’s all-time coaching win list, led the Beavers to 119 total victories, including four seasons of at least 18 wins and two second-place NSIC finishes, and was NSIC Volleyball Coach of the Year in 1995. Including her previous years coaching at North Dakota State University and Montana State, she finished her career among the top 15 active NCAA volleyball coaches, with 484 victories.
During her tenure are BSU, Palivec coached 13 All-NSIC student-athletes and 17 All-Academic team members.
Palivec lettered in five sports at Indiana University where she earned her B.S. degree with a major in physical education. She played on the IU women’s basketball team that made an AIAW Final Four appearance in 1973. In addition to coaching, Palivec was actively involved in training coaches and athletes through the MSHSL and USA Volleyball. She is a Hall of Fame inductee at both NDSU and BSU and with the Minnesota Volleyball Coaches Association. She also earned the Leanne Grotke Award from Indiana University in 2017 and the Special Merit Award at the Minnesota National Girls & Women in Sports Day Celebration in 2018. Today, Palivec actively volunteers within the Bemidji community after working as a professor at the University for 22 years.