Volleyball had been played as a club sport since 1961. In 1973 Vice Chancellor Howard Aldmon announced that women’s intercollegiate athletics would be moved from the club sport level to the institutional level and coordinated by the School of Health, Physical Education and Recreation’s Women’s Physical Education Department. Seven sports were elevated, one of which was volleyball. The first coach under the new arrangement was Kay Hart, assistant professor in the Women’s Physical Education Department. In 1976, when the Women’s Athletics Department was established, volleyball was one of the seven sports in which competition was available.
Volleyball was first played in a gym in the Health, Physical Education, and Recreation Building. In 1992 seats at the Alumni Memorial Building were brought closer to the court, and Alumni Memorial became the home of the Women’s Intercollegiate Volleyball Team. With the renovation of Alumni Memorial, volleyball relocated to Stokely Athletics Center, and then to Thompson-Boling Arena when the fire marshal placed stringent restrictions on the number of spectators allowed at Stokely.
Long-term Head Coach Rob Patrick was twice named National Coach of the Year. Under his direction, the team shared the regular season SEC title with Louisiana State University in 2004 and won it outright in 2011. The team also captured three SEC tournament titles and played in one NCAA Final Four.