History
The University of Florida's athletic department, the University Athletic Association, authorized the first intercollegiate varsity women's volleyball team to begin play in the fall of 1984. Marilyn McReavy was the Gators' first head coach, and she led the Gators volleyball team for seven seasons from 1984 to 1990. McReavy's Gators compiled an overall win-loss record of 156–100 (.609), and an Southeastern Conference (SEC) record of 26–20 (.565). Her best SEC finish was second place in 1988, and her 1987 team was the only one that qualified for the NCAA tournament. McReavy resigned after a 15–16 performance in 1990.
Coach Mary Wise was hired to replace Marilyn McReavy in 1991. In their first year under Wise, the Gators won the SEC regular season championship, sharing it with the LSU Tigers volleyball team.
In 1992, Florida made its first ever NCAA Final Four appearance, where they lost in the semifinals to eventual national runner-up UCLA 15-12, 15-12, 15-10.
In 1993, Wise became the first Division I female head coach to guide her team to more than one final four. In 1996, the Gators made their trip to their third final four in five years, losing to Hawaiʻi in the semifinals. Wise was named the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Division I National Coach of the Year.
In 1997, the Gators appeared in the final four once again, being swept by Penn State in the semifinals. The roster consisted of a young squad, only have three seniors on the team.
The Gators made their third consecutive final four in 1998, where they again lost in the semifinals, to eventual national champion and undefeated Long Beach State, 15-2, 15-8, 15-10.
In 2002, Florida made their first final four appearance since 1998, defeating Temple in the Sweet 16 and Penn State in the Elite Eight, before falling to eventual national champion Southern California in the semifinals.
After being 0-for-6 in previous NCAA Final Four semifinals, Florida broke through in 2003, by defeating Hawaii in the semis, 30-28, 30-28, 23-30, 30-28. Appearing in their first NCAA title match in school history, the Gators lost to undefeated Southern California in four sets, 25-30, 30-27, 30-19, 30-26. Wise became the first Division I female coach to coach in a championship match. In addition, Florida set a then-NCAA record of 105 straight games won during the 2003 season.
Read more about this topic: Florida Gators Women's Volleyball
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