USF's Mueller Takes Head Coaching Job With Illinois-Chicago

Head volleyball coach Nancy Mueller announced today that she will be leaving USF to take a position as the head volleyball coach at the University of Illinois-Chicago.

A two-time Conference USA and AVCA/Tachikara Midwest Region Coach of the Year, Mueller amassed a 106-60 (.639) overall record and 53-21 (.716) Conference USA record in her five years at the helm of the USF program. She led the Bulls to two regular-season C-USA Championships (2000 and 2002), a C-USA Tournament title (2002) and two appearances in the NCAA Tournament (2000 and 2002).

Mueller’s 2002 squad finished the season 30-7, only the second time in program history that a USF team had amassed 30 or more wins in a season. The team also advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament for only the second time in school history.

She earned her 100th career victory on Sept. 19, 2003, with a 3-0 win over Western Carolina in the Georgia Tech Invitational, making her the fastest coach in USF volleyball history to reach the 100-win plateau.

During her tenure she coached a two-time C-USA Player of the Year (Michelle Coller) and a two-time C-USA Setter of the Year (Ale Domingos). In addition, Collier was named to the AVCA All-Region team all four years of her career, while Domingos was named to it both her years with USF. Under the direction of Mueller, Collier also became the program’s first-ever All-American when she was named to the AVCA All-America Third Team following her senior season in 2002. In Mueller’s five years, she had four players named to the All-C-USA First Team, one to the All-C-USA Second Team, two to the All-C-USA Third Team and three to the C-USA All-Freshman Team.

“Nancy has meant a great deal to the success of the USF volleyball program,” senior associate athletic director Barbara Sparks-McGlinchy said. “She is not just a coach, but a teacher of the game. She will be missed, but departs having established a solid foundation for this program.”