Women's Beach Volleyball
Collier, Anna
Anna Collier
- Title:
- Head Coach
- Email:
- annacoll@usc.edu
- Phone:
- 740-3818
Anna Biller Collier, who coached women’s beach volleyball teams in a pair of Olympics, is in her eighth season (2018-19) as USC’s first and only head coach.
Collier guided the Women of Troy to three consecutive national titles (2015-17) including the first-ever NCAA crown in the sport (2016). Collier has compiled a 173-32 (.844) overall record in her seven seasons on campus and was named the 2014 AVCA National Coach of the Year.
A USC graduate herself, Collier led the Women of Troy to the program’s first team national title with a 28-0 record as the Trojans won the 2015 AVCA Collegiate Sand Volleyball National Championship. The following year, she guided USC to a 34-2 mark and a school-record 30-match winning streak en route to claiming the first-ever NCAA championship. The Women of Troy were crowned for a third straight year in 2017 as USC went 38-1 to capture back-to-back NCAA titles. The Trojans also set a new NCAA-record winning streak at 62 matches.
Under Collier’s guidance, USC also claimed back-to-back Pac-12 championships in 2016 and 2017. In 2014, the Trojans were 22-1 entering the national tournament. The Women of Troy finished in a fourth-place tie in the 2018 NCAA tourney and finished the year with a 27-14 overall record.
Collier also coached three different USC pairs to consecutive individual titles. Kirby Burnham and Stevi Robinson teamed to win the 2013 championship and became the program’s first-ever AVCA All-Americans. The duo finished 25-4 overall. In 2014, Burnham and Sara Hughes went 42-4 and brought Troy a second pairs’ championship on the sand. Hughes claimed her second national crown as she and Kelly Claes went 44-3 en route to the 2015 AVCA Pairs National Championship. Claes and Hughes went 48-0 in 2016 as they repeated their All-America laurels. Claes and Hughes completed their careers together with a remarkable 147-4 record and won the 2017 USAV Beach Collegiate Pairs National Championship. Their senior campaigns included an NCAA-record 103-match winning streak.
In the summer of 2016, Collier led Team USA to gold and silver medals at the World University Games in Parnü, Estonia. Claes and Hughes ascended to the top of the medal stand while Arizona’s twin duo of Madison and McKenna Witt collected silver medals.
Collier has coached nine different players to AVCA All-America honors, including repeat honorees Buckovec, Burnham, Claes, and Hughes. Women of Troy own a total of 16 AVCA All-America certificates.
In 2014, Collier coached the Trojans to a 23-3 record and a second consecutive third-place finish in the team portion of the AVCA Collegiate Sand Volleyball National Championship. In 2013, she guided USC to a 16-8 mark and a third-place finish at the AVCA Championships. The Trojans had a 7-4 record in 2012, the sport’s inaugural season as an NCAA-sponsored emerging sport, and sent two USC duos to the pairs championship of the first AVCA pairs tourney (Sara Shaw-Geena Urango and Burnham-Kelly Irvin both advanced to the quarterfinals).
In addition to her four collegiate pairs champions, she has led two U.S. teams to fifth-place finishes at the Olympics: Holly McPeak and Nancy Reno in the 1996 Atlanta Games and Annette Davis and Jenny Johnson in the 2000 Sydney Games.
Collier has coached beach volleyball since 1990, including working with such standouts as Misty May-Treanor, Kerri Walsh, Nicole Branagh, Rachel Wacholder, and Angie Akers.
As head coach for the U.S. Senior A2 Beach National Team, she led American teams to first- and fifth-place finishes at the 2012 World University Championships in Brazil. She coached U26 and U23 A2 U.S. squads at the 2010 Team FISU World University Championships in Turkey. She coached the U26 U.S. squads at the 2011 Team FISU World University Championships in China. She also served as coach of Team USA at the 2013 Summer World University Games in Russia.
On top of her duties, she is a USAV High Performance coach and a founder member of the USAV Beach Coaching Accreditation Program Cadre.
She has also served as a faculty member (teaching a variety of kinesiology classes) at Santa Monica (Calif.) College, where she has spent 36 years. She began as the women’s cross country and track and field coach, winning three California State championships. She previously was the chair of the kinesiology and athletics department.
Collier played professionally on the beach for seven seasons between 1978 and 1989, posting 10 Top-10 finishes among her 20 tournament appearances (including third place at the 1979 San Clemente Open and a pair of ninth-place finishes at the legendary Manhattan Beach Open in 1987 and 1988).
She attended USC, where as Anna Biller, she was on the track and field, volleyball, and swimming teams. She was a two-time All-American in track as a member of the Women of Troy 800-meter (1975) and 400-meter (1977) relay teams. She earned her degree in physical education from USC in 1977.
Collier guided the Women of Troy to three consecutive national titles (2015-17) including the first-ever NCAA crown in the sport (2016). Collier has compiled a 173-32 (.844) overall record in her seven seasons on campus and was named the 2014 AVCA National Coach of the Year.
A USC graduate herself, Collier led the Women of Troy to the program’s first team national title with a 28-0 record as the Trojans won the 2015 AVCA Collegiate Sand Volleyball National Championship. The following year, she guided USC to a 34-2 mark and a school-record 30-match winning streak en route to claiming the first-ever NCAA championship. The Women of Troy were crowned for a third straight year in 2017 as USC went 38-1 to capture back-to-back NCAA titles. The Trojans also set a new NCAA-record winning streak at 62 matches.
Under Collier’s guidance, USC also claimed back-to-back Pac-12 championships in 2016 and 2017. In 2014, the Trojans were 22-1 entering the national tournament. The Women of Troy finished in a fourth-place tie in the 2018 NCAA tourney and finished the year with a 27-14 overall record.
Collier also coached three different USC pairs to consecutive individual titles. Kirby Burnham and Stevi Robinson teamed to win the 2013 championship and became the program’s first-ever AVCA All-Americans. The duo finished 25-4 overall. In 2014, Burnham and Sara Hughes went 42-4 and brought Troy a second pairs’ championship on the sand. Hughes claimed her second national crown as she and Kelly Claes went 44-3 en route to the 2015 AVCA Pairs National Championship. Claes and Hughes went 48-0 in 2016 as they repeated their All-America laurels. Claes and Hughes completed their careers together with a remarkable 147-4 record and won the 2017 USAV Beach Collegiate Pairs National Championship. Their senior campaigns included an NCAA-record 103-match winning streak.
In the summer of 2016, Collier led Team USA to gold and silver medals at the World University Games in Parnü, Estonia. Claes and Hughes ascended to the top of the medal stand while Arizona’s twin duo of Madison and McKenna Witt collected silver medals.
Collier has coached nine different players to AVCA All-America honors, including repeat honorees Buckovec, Burnham, Claes, and Hughes. Women of Troy own a total of 16 AVCA All-America certificates.
In 2014, Collier coached the Trojans to a 23-3 record and a second consecutive third-place finish in the team portion of the AVCA Collegiate Sand Volleyball National Championship. In 2013, she guided USC to a 16-8 mark and a third-place finish at the AVCA Championships. The Trojans had a 7-4 record in 2012, the sport’s inaugural season as an NCAA-sponsored emerging sport, and sent two USC duos to the pairs championship of the first AVCA pairs tourney (Sara Shaw-Geena Urango and Burnham-Kelly Irvin both advanced to the quarterfinals).
In addition to her four collegiate pairs champions, she has led two U.S. teams to fifth-place finishes at the Olympics: Holly McPeak and Nancy Reno in the 1996 Atlanta Games and Annette Davis and Jenny Johnson in the 2000 Sydney Games.
Collier has coached beach volleyball since 1990, including working with such standouts as Misty May-Treanor, Kerri Walsh, Nicole Branagh, Rachel Wacholder, and Angie Akers.
As head coach for the U.S. Senior A2 Beach National Team, she led American teams to first- and fifth-place finishes at the 2012 World University Championships in Brazil. She coached U26 and U23 A2 U.S. squads at the 2010 Team FISU World University Championships in Turkey. She coached the U26 U.S. squads at the 2011 Team FISU World University Championships in China. She also served as coach of Team USA at the 2013 Summer World University Games in Russia.
On top of her duties, she is a USAV High Performance coach and a founder member of the USAV Beach Coaching Accreditation Program Cadre.
She has also served as a faculty member (teaching a variety of kinesiology classes) at Santa Monica (Calif.) College, where she has spent 36 years. She began as the women’s cross country and track and field coach, winning three California State championships. She previously was the chair of the kinesiology and athletics department.
Collier played professionally on the beach for seven seasons between 1978 and 1989, posting 10 Top-10 finishes among her 20 tournament appearances (including third place at the 1979 San Clemente Open and a pair of ninth-place finishes at the legendary Manhattan Beach Open in 1987 and 1988).
She attended USC, where as Anna Biller, she was on the track and field, volleyball, and swimming teams. She was a two-time All-American in track as a member of the Women of Troy 800-meter (1975) and 400-meter (1977) relay teams. She earned her degree in physical education from USC in 1977.
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