Texas A&M–Commerce Lions women's volleyball

Texas A&M–Commerce Lions
women's volleyball

University Texas A&M University–Commerce
Conference Lone Star
Location Commerce, TX
Head coach Craig Case (6th year)
Arena Texas A&M–Commerce Field House
(Capacity: 5,000)
Nickname Lions
Colors Blue and Gold

             

AIAW and NCAA Tournament Elite Eight
1986
AIAW and NCAA Tournament Appearances
1986, 1987, 1988
Conference Tournament Champions
1986
Conference Regular Season Champions
1986, 1987

The Texas A&M–Commerce Lions women's volleyball team (formerly the East Texas State Lions) is the women's intercollegiate volleyball program representing Texas A&M University–Commerce. The school competes in the Lone Star Conference (LSC) in Division II of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The A&M–Commerce women's volleyball team plays its home games at the University Field House on the university campus in Commerce, Texas. The Lions have won two conference regular-season titles, an LSC tournament championship, and have appeared in the NCAA tournament on three occasions, all during the tenure of head coach Kathy Goodlett (1983–89). The team is currently coached by Craig Case.

History

The 2014 A&M–Commerce women's volleyball team
The 2013 team in action against the Texas A&M–Kingsville Javelinas
The 2014 team in action against the Southern Arkansas Muleriders
The 2015 team in action against the Midwestern State Mustangs

Women's volleyball has been a varsity sport at A&M–Commerce (then East Texas State) since 1978, and the team has played in the LSC since it began sponsoring the sport in 1983.[1] In 1980, the Lions finished the season as the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) national runners-up.[2] From its inception until 1982, the program competed in the NAIA under head coach Donna Tavener; that year, it began competing at the NCAA Division II level.[1]

The Lions were one of the strongest teams in the LSC during the 1980s, never finishing below fourth place in the conference under the guidance of head coach Kathy Goodlett between 1983 and 1989, and winning the conference regular-season title in 1986 and 1987 as well as the LSC tournament in 1986.[1][2] The team also reached the NCAA Division II tournament quarterfinals in 1987,[2] and advanced to the second round of the national tournament in the two subsequent seasons, 1987 and 1988.[1]

Since the end of Goodlett's coaching tenure in 1989, the A&M–Commerce women's volleyball program has failed to win a regular-season conference championship, an LSC tournament title, or qualify for the NCAA tournament.[1][3] During this span, the Lions have been coached by Terri Johnson (1990–95), Larry Blackwell (1996–2002), Gwen Weatherford (2003–07), Mark Pryor (2008–09), and Craig Case (2010–present).[1]

All-time record

Year Head Coach Overall Pct. Conf. Pct. Place Tourn. Postseason
1978 Donna Tavener 23–22 .511
1979 11–18 .379
1980 26–16 .619
1981 20–18 .526
1982 28–11 .718
1983 Kathy Goodlett 34–12 .739 3–3 .500 3rd
1984 33–17 .660 8–2 .800 2nd 2nd
1985 25–25 .500 6–4 .600 4th 2nd
1986 22–2 .917 12–0 1.000 1st 1st Quarterfinals
1987 31–6 .838 8–1 .889 1st Second Round
1988 23–10 .697 12–2 .857 2nd Second Round
1989 17–19 .472 10–6 .625 3rd
1990 Terri Johnson 12–16 .429 9–6 .600 4th
1991 8–22 .267 3–6 .333 6th
1992 18–17 .514 3–5 .375 5th
1993 15–21 .417 5–9 .357 7th
1994 21–12 .636 11–2 .846 2nd 2nd
1995 20–13 .606 10–6 .625 3rd
1996 Larry Blackwell 7–27 .206 5–13 .278 8th
1997 17–16 .515 5–5 .500 4th (North)
1998 16–19 .457 7–5 .583 4th (North)
1999 13–20 .394 6–6 .500 4th (North)
2000 24–13 .649 7–3 .700 3rd (North)
2001 21–13 .618 7–3 .700 3rd (North)
2002 24–13 .649 7–3 .700 2nd (North)
2003 Gwen Weatherford 15–16 .484 4–7 .364 4th (North)
2004 7–23 .233 3–7 .300 T4th (North)
2005 10–19 .345 2–8 .200 6th (North)
2006 11–19 .367 4–8 .333 6th (North)
2007 9–19 .321 3–9 .250 11th
2008 Mark Pryor 15–12 .556 6–7 .462 7th T5th
2009 26–9 .743 9–4 .692 4th T3rd
2010 Craig Case 14–15 .483 4–10 .286 T10th
2011 11–17 .393 6–14 .300 T9th
2012 20–11 .645 11–9 .550 5th T5th
2013 23–9 .719 9–7 .563 4th T3rd
2014 7–23 .233 4–12 .250 8th T5th
2015 15–14 .517 7–9 .438 6th 6th

Year-by-year results through the end of the 2015 season[1][3]

Arena

The Field House as it appeared in 2015

The Lions women's volleyball program has played at the University Field House since the inception of the program in 1978, although the arena itself was built in 1950 and dedicated in January 1951 as the home of the school's men's basketball program. The Field House has a capacity of 5,000 for both volleyball and basketball contests. The building as a whole measures a total of 69,000 square feet (6,400 m2), enabling it to host the offices of numerous A&M–Commerce sports (including cross country, track and field, soccer, and softball in addition to basketball and volleyball) and university departments (the Athletic Department, Athletic Training, Health and Human Performance, and the James Thrower Academic Center). The arena has also been the host to numerous athletic camps and concerts.[4]

Designed by George Dahl, the Field House was intended to resemble an airplane hangar, with an arched roof topping out at 58 feet (18 m) that is supported by steel beams. In 1949, school president James Gee announced plans for the building's construction along with Memorial Stadium at a combined cost of $325,000. Since its opening in 1951, the Field House has been renovated on numerous occasions: in 1969 (adding classrooms, offices, and dressing rooms), 1991 (replacing bleachers, hardwood playing surface, the HVAC system, and scoreboards), and 2014 (again replacing the playing surface).[4]

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "A&M-Commerce Volleyball History: All-time Game Results". LionAthletics.com. Texas A&M University–Commerce. Due to technical limitations, the link "All-Time Results" must be clicked on from the "A&M-Commerce Volleyball History" landing page. Retrieved November 10, 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 Reynolds 1993, p. 161
  3. 1 2 "2015 LSC Fall Media Guide". Lone Star Conference. 2015. Retrieved November 12, 2015.
  4. 1 2 "Field House". LionAthletics.com. Texas A&M University–Commerce. Retrieved November 12, 2015.

References

Reynolds, Donald E. (1993). Professor Mayo's College: A History of East Texas State University. Commerce, Texas: East Texas State University Press. ISBN 0963709208. 

External links

Media related to Texas A&M–Commerce Lions women's volleyball at Wikimedia Commons

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