Melissa Ferris arrived at Rice to begin the 2004 season as a member of the completely revamped Owls coaching staff that went on to make Rice volleyball a force to be reckoned with in the Western Athletic Conference and the NCAA. Now in her fourth season at Rice, Ferris looks to help the Owls continue to build upon their recent successes.

Ferris leads the recruiting efforts at Rice, and Rice fans have seen the results as the Owls' class of 2006 received highest honorable mention from PrepVolleyball.com. This year, PrepVolleyball.com honored entering freshman Caroline Gill with high school all-America honors, one just 150 high schoolers nationwide to be recognized.

"Melissa coming back and being with me going into a fourth season is just really special," said head coach Genny Volpe. "She's a great role model for the players. She has done a great job leading the recruiting for us."

In her inagural season as a Rice assistant, Ferris helped lead the Owls to a 25-5 record and an appearance in the NCAA tournament. Ferris' coaching helped the Owls attain a team hitting percentage of .277 for the season, an all-time team record at Rice and the best in the WAC in 2004. Rice also led the WAC in kills, assists, and opponent hitting percentage and excelled off the court as well, winning the American Volleyball Coaches Association's Team Academic Award.

Before joining the Rice volleyball staff, Ferris spent two seasons as an assistant coach at Wyoming. The Cowgirls produced a 35-27 record during Ferris' two-year tenure, advancing to the Mountain West Conference tournament in both seasons.

Prior to joining the coaching staff at Wyoming, Ferris spent four years at Texas State. With the Bobcats, she was responsible for the day-to-day activities of the volleyball program, including recruiting, preparing scouting reports and coordinating team practices. The Bobcats were 87-41 during her four years in San Marcos.

A 1996 graduate of the University of Arizona, Ferris served as a volunteer assistant coach at her alma mater in 1998 while coaching the Zona Volleyball Club. A four-year letterwinner at Arizona, she finished her career with 1,273 kills, a mark that still ranks in the top five on the Wildcats all-time list. She also had 88 solo blocks, sixth all-time at Arizona. During Ferris' playing days at Arizona, the Wildcats made it to the Sweet Sixteen twice.

Ferris was named to the Pac-10 Conference all-decade team in 1998, and was inducted into the Pinecrest High School hall of fame in 2000.

The North Carolina native was a member of the United States Olympic Festival team that captured the silver medal in 1993. She also played professionally in Switzerland in 1996 and for the National Volleyball Association team in 1996-97.

Ferris holds a bachelor's degree in family studies from the University of Arizona.