Former USC volleyball coach Ernie Hix dies at 80
Ernie Hix, who earned the nickname “the father of USC men’s volleyball” after winning two national championships with the school, died on Saturday. He was 80.
The coach’s death, confirmed by USC, was due to a malignant melanoma. Hix compiled a record of 138-49 over eight seasons with USC. His teams also finished as the national runner-up twice.
In a statement, current USC men’s volleyball Coach Jeff Nygaard said that Hix “singlehandedly grew USC men’s volleyball from its infancy into an NCAA championship-winning program, and along the way he had a deep impact on those who played for him.”
Hix, a 1958 graduate of USC, played for the basketball team as a student.
He began as the USC volleyball coach in 1974 and soon grew the team into a power. USC did not give its players scholarships until 1977. Hix won his first national championship that season. His second came in 1980.
At USC, Hix coached several All-Americans and four Olympians: Dusty Dvorak, Steve Timmons, Celso Kalache and Pat Powers.
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