Lauren Leth Named Volleyball Coach of the Year | Pearland Dawson's Historic 2025 Season

Ranked eighth in the Houston area to start the season, Pearland Dawson's 2025 volleyball team was expected to be competitive — not historic. Under head coach Lauren Leth, the Eagles finished 42-5, rode a 22-match winning streak into the UIL state championship match, and delivered the most successful season in program history.

For that run, Leth was named the HOU Inside High School Sports Volleyball Coach of the Year, receiving the signature Parker University Bobblehead award. It was a fitting capstone to a coaching career that spanned more than 450 wins — one Leth herself didn't know would end the way it did.

In August, before the season began, Leth had already accepted an administrative position. That meant she knew going in that every match, every practice, every moment with her players would be her last as a head coach. "I had the blessing of knowing everything we did was my last," she said.

Dawson's state run ended against Byron Nelson, the nation's top-ranked team at the time. But reaching that stage — the first state championship match appearance for any Dawson program — validated what Leth had built. She credited the team's underdog mentality, born from that preseason ranking, as a driving force throughout the year.

Leth has now moved into her administrative role, closing out a coaching career defined by consistent excellence in one of Texas's most competitive volleyball landscapes.