South Florida Bulls beach volleyball
| South Florida Bulls beach volleyball | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Founded | 2026 |
| University | University of South Florida |
| Athletic director | Michael Kelly |
| Head coach | Pri Piantadosi-Lima (1st season) |
| Conference | CUSA |
| Location | Tampa, Florida |
| Nickname | Bulls |
The South Florida Bulls beach volleyball team will represent the University of South Florida in the sport of women's beach volleyball at the NCAA National Collegiate level[a] beginning in spring 2026. In June 2023 USF hired Pri Piantadosi-Lima as the team's first ever head coach.[1]
Because the Bulls main conference, the American Athletic Conference, does not sponsor the sport of beach volleyball, the team will play as members of Conference USA.[2] The Bulls will play their home games on campus, with a new three court facility set to be built on the north side of the Yuengling Center before their first season.[3][4]
History
[edit]The team was first announced in February 2022 and will become the university's 21st varsity sports team (and 12th women's team) when they begin play in spring 2026.[3][5] The team was originally scheduled to start in 2025 but was postponed to 2026 in June 2023.[6] At the time of the team's founding, beach volleyball was the newest NCAA sport and was sponsored by 86 teams across the NCAA's three divisions.[7][8] NCAA beach volleyball championships are competed at the National Collegiate level rather than division levels like most NCAA sports, meaning that Division I, II, and III schools all compete directly against each other.
Pri Piantadosi-Lima was hired as the first head coach on June 6, 2023. She previously helped lead Eckerd College to an AVCA National Championship as an assistant coach.[1]
On November 5, 2024, USF athletic director Michael Kelly announced that the team would play as members of Conference USA.[2]
See also
[edit]Notes
[edit]- ^ "National Collegiate" means that NCAA Division I, NCAA Division II, and NCAA Division III schools all compete against each other directly instead of being separated into divisions. USF is a member of Division I for all other NCAA sports.
References
[edit]- ^ a b "Pri Piantadosi-Lima Named First Head Coach of USF Beach Volleyball". USF Athletics. 2023-06-29. Retrieved 2023-06-29.
- ^ a b "USF BEACH VOLLEYBALL JOINS CONFERENCE USA". USF Athletics. 2024-11-03. Retrieved 2024-11-06.
- ^ a b "USF to Add Women's Beach Volleyball in 2024-25". USF Athletics. Retrieved 2022-02-14.
- ^ "Beach Volleyball". www.gousfbullsmp.com. Retrieved 2022-09-05.
- ^ Camargo, Alberto (2022-02-02). "USF Athletics announces addition of women's beach volleyball". The Oracle. Retrieved 2022-02-14.
- ^ "USF Beach Volleyball To Begin Competition in 2025-26 Season". USF Athletics. 2023-06-06. Retrieved 2023-06-29.
- ^ "NCAA Division II and Division III membership approves Sand Volleyball as 90th championship".
- ^ "NCAA Directory - Directory - Member Listing". web3.ncaa.org. Retrieved 2022-02-14.
