Coming in 2025 ~ “Donna Dulle Court”

 

[December 02, 2024]  ’Twas the night before Thanksgiving when fans packed the Multi-Purpose Gym at Mount Pulaski High School to recognize the outstanding achievements of the no. 4 ranked volleyball program in IHSA history and the school unleashed this amazing news: the court in the school’s 1963 gymnasium will be named “Donna Dulle Court.”

Athletic Director Johnathan Jordan confirmed that the court will be dedicated sometime next year. First, work will have to be done in the summer to prepare the gym floor, he said.

On Wednesday night multi-generations of volleyball players and fans showed up to honor Dulle, who spent 40 years teaching young girls to play the game of volleyball in the school district. Dulle was handed the microphone upon the big announcement and she was quick to recognize and thank everyone from former assistant coaches to players to parents to concession workers to even the bus drivers and the referees that she really liked through the years. She was sincere in showing her gratitude to them, giving them credit for the success throughout the years. She thanked her family at the end of the almost twenty minute speech, giving her husband, Ron, credit for raising their two daughters, Kathy and Bethany.

Coaching is a demanding career that Dulle has mastered over decades. Few have had the dedication that Dulle has possessed. She could be the president of a very elite club.

After Dulle finished her speech, she invited anyone from the crowd to speak and several people did come forward with stories of their own. The crowd enjoyed several laughs and there were also moments that could move one to tears. Dulle’s impact was felt throughout the gym. It was relayed that her impact was not just about the game of volleyball on the court, but it extended way beyond in ways unimaginable to those who never crossed her path. For as intense as Dulle was coaching her players, she was completely the opposite off the court. The woman loves to have fun and she wants everyone around her to have fun. She can be relaxed and silly. She has a heart that never stops giving. She truly has a desire to help others around her. She made Mount Pulaski volleyball a success story that we can all look back on and smile when someone asks, “Where are you from?” Because just the mention of “Mount Pulaski” triggers the response, “You have a really good volleyball program.”

As a testament to her legacy, nearly 100 former players dropped everything the night before Thanksgiving to show up for her.

The Dulle Dynasty

This is a much deserved honor for the coach who started her career in Mount Pulaski with 35 consecutive seasons of 20 or more wins that all began in 1981. For sixteen of those seasons, Dulle’s teams had 30 or more wins and in three seasons her teams had 40 or more wins.

Dulle was impressive right out of the gate in Mount Pulaski. Her first volleyball team went 22-3 and won a district title over Athens in 1981. Pretty incredible for the woman who was initially picked to coach girls basketball. At the very last minute, Dulle recalled switching coaching jobs with Mike Struna, who was chosen to be the girls volleyball coach early on. The two mutually decided to switch positions and to sound cheesy, “the rest is history.”

Terri May Sefried was a junior on that first Dulle-led team at MPHS and she said, “If I remember right, we could NEVER get past Riverton. We could beat Rochester and Rochester beat Riverton but we could never get past Riverton.”

The Riverton Hawks volleyball team would make it to the state tournament seven times in the decade of the 80s, bringing home three state trophies.

It would take a few years for Mount Pulaski to reach and begin to surpass the success of their Route 54 neighbors up the road.

Members of that first Dulle team in 1981 were: Beth Olson, Sydney Edwards, Julie Donnelly, Terres Eggers, Terri May, Maura Kolb, Chris Griffin, Shari Eggers, Karilyn Stoll, Kathy Cusey, Jennifer Roos and Julie Mason.

By the time 1984 rolled around, Dulle’s team was getting a real taste of the postseason with the first regional championship and that success would continue for 24 consecutive seasons. In all, Dulle and her teams would collect 33 regional championship plaques.

Some of those players from the 80s made the trip to see Dulle and the rest of the teams on Wednesday night. Terri May was the only “OG” in attendance from that original 1981 team, however, Beth Olson did have a ton of family there.

Lynn Clementz was a dynamic youngster on that 1985 sectional championship team and she came from Kentucky to honor the woman who impacted her coaching career in a huge way. Lynn’s sister, Tammy, came along with fellow ladies from the 80s, Patti Bottrell and Stacy Letterle.

By the end of the 80s, the Lady Toppers brought home the school’s first volleyball state championship, led by two-time First Team All-Stater Tina Rogers of Elkhart. The 6-3 power hitter carried the team to a second place finish in 1988 before the 1989 state championship. Rogers went on to star at the University of Illinois.

The 90s were highlighted by a second and third place finish at the IHSA Class A State Volleyball Finals. A lot of Division I athletes came out of this group and now they have daughters of their own playing volleyball. The Vaughan sisters (Heather and Lisa) were in the crowd Wednesday night along with Sallie Bowles. All three former Lady Toppers have produced great athletes of their own who attend Mount Pulaski schools.

The program’s success carried into the next century with four more trophies being collected at State in Class A. Dulle’s daughter Bethany was a First Team All-Stater in 2002 and 2003.

When the two-class system went into effect in 2007, Dulle’s team was the first to capture a Class 1A State Championship. Christina Stoll, a key member of that team, was on hand Wednesday night with her husband and five kids. Christina was proudly showing her family the hardware she helped earn.

Before the decade ended, MPHS would claim another trophy at State. In 2009 Morgan Litterly and Lindsey Durchholz were part of a dominant squad that featured three freshmen. Litterly and Durchholz were in attendance Wednesday night in addition to the youngest Durchholz sister, Rachel, who was a freshman on the team. Rachel was part of a trio of freshmen that also included Jessica Awe and Breanna Howe. These three would continue the tradition of going to State by helping to bring home second place trophies in 2011 and 2012.

Whitney Nichols and Cady Lowery came to show their support for Dulle Wednesday night, as they were also an integral part of those 2011 and 2012 teams. Nichols is just one of Dulle’s former athletes who has pursued coaching. Nichols went from the MPHS volleyball coach to the Millikin University coaching staff, where she is achieving great success now as the head coach.

The Dulle Dynasty came to an end during Covid-19 but it’s nice to see that her name will be etched in the hardwood at MPHS, forever on display for future and past generations of volleyball excellence.

Speaking of volleyball excellence, the proof was on full display Wednesday night. Some of the trophies and plaques were placed on the stage along with posters and newspaper articles. The Dulle years produced 12 state trophies and 23 Sectional plaques.

Obviously, many athletes are not mentioned here and as Dulle noted in her speech, she has coached over a thousand young women. So it’s a pretty tall task to name them all in one article. Just know that each and every athlete left their mark in volleyball history, no matter what role they played. And the numerous sister/cousin/mother/daughter connections are a real thing in Mount Pulaski volleyball history, thanks to the mother of it all ~ Donna Dulle.

Congratulations, Dulle! We all look forward to that name etched in the floor that so many of your athletes pounded a volleyball on.

Video: Mt. Pulaski High School Announces the "Donna Dulle Court" in honor of beloved volleyball coach

[Teena Lowery]