MIAMI (February 23, 2017) – Assistant Athletic Director and Head Volleyball and Beach Volleyball Coach,
Rita Buck-Crockett was formally inducted into the Texas Sports Hall of Fame on Tuesday, February 21 in Waco, Texas, at the Waco Convention Center. Buck-Crockett was one of eight new members to be inducted into the Class of 2017, and is the first volleyball player to ever be inducted into the TSHOF.
"This was a once in a lifetime experience because my great state of Texas recognized me as the first volleyball Player to be inducted into the Hall of Fame with so many talented people in my class," said Buck-Crockett. "I was so happy to be able to share that moment with my family, because this honor belongs to them just as much as it belongs to me."
A native of San Antonio, Texas, Buck-Crockett is considered one of the best volleyball players in history, spending her collegiate years at the University of Houston, being named a 1977 AIAW All-American, before representing the U.S. Olympic team in 1980 and 1984. Buck-Crockett led the '84 team to a silver medal, a team which is still tied for the best indoor finish in U.S. Olympic history.
Internationally, Buck-Crockett also played professional volleyball in Japan, Italy and Switzerland. In 1986, she returned to the United States to play in the new Major League Volleyball league, earning MVP in 1987. Buck-Crockett later teamed with Volleyball Hall of Famer Jackie Silva (who helped Buck-Crockett coach the 2015 FIU beach volleyball team voluntarily; that team ranked third nationally) to win the World Beach Volleyball Championship, becoming the first African-American woman to earn the title.
Buck-Crockett's indoor career continued in Italy with Mater and Rome from 1988-1993, earning the MVP of the Italian League in '91.
After her playing career ended in 1998, Buck-Crockett served as the head coach for Iowa (1998-2004) before taking on the associate head volleyball coach role at Florida State (2004-05). Now, Buck-Crockett is entering her fifth season as the FIU beach volleyball head coach. Buck-Crockett was awarded the AVCA Coach of the Year Award in 2015. She has a current streak of 72 consecutive matches, ranked in the top-10 nationally and has taken FIU to two AVCA Championships (No. 5 seed in 2014; No. 3 seed in 2015).
Texas Hall of Fame, Class of 2017
Rita Buck-Crockett
Dave Elmendorf
Pat Henry
Flo Hyman
Nastia Liukin
Eric Metcalf
Wade Phillips
Darren Woodson
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About FIU Athletics: FIU Athletics is home to more than 400 student-athletes in 18 different sports. Athletic events are played in seven different venues on FIU's campuses (Modesto A. Maidique and Biscayne Bay), including FIU Arena and Ocean Bank Field at FIU Stadium.
About FIU: Florida International University is recognized as a Carnegie engaged university. It is a public research university with colleges and schools that offers more than 180 bachelor's, master's and doctoral programs in fields such as engineering, international relations, architecture, law and medicine. As one of South Florida's anchor institutions, FIU contributes $9.8 billion each year to the local economy. FIU is Worlds Ahead in finding solutions to the most challenging problems of our time. FIU emphasizes research as a major component of its mission. FIU has awarded over 200,000 degrees and enrolls more than 54,000 students in two campuses and three centers including FIU Downtown on Brickell, FIU@I-75, and the Miami Beach Urban Studios. FIU also supports artistic and cultural engagement through its three museums: the Patricia & Phillip Frost Art Museum, the Wolfsonian-FIU, and the Jewish Museum of Florida-FIU. FIU is a member of Conference USA and has over 400 student-athletes participating in 18 sports. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu/.
