Florida Memorial University recently issued the following announcement.
Florida Memorial University announced Tuesday that head indoor/beach volleyball coach Marrita Crockett-Moulton will step down from her position following the conclusion of the beach volleyball season this coming spring.
Lions Director of Athletics Jason Horn confirmed that the athletic department will begin its search for its next volleyball coach in January 2022.
"We appreciate the hard work, the energy, and definitely the success that Marrita brought not only to our volleyball programs but to our entire athletic department. And we respect her decision to step down," AD Horn said. "Her accomplishments in two different sports here will always be a part of the fabric of the program, and we wish her and her family the best as she finishes her time with us and prepares to move forward."
Under Crockett-Moulton, Florida Memorial's volleyball program enjoyed a successful three-season run that resulted in a pair of Sun Conference Tournament championships – one indoor and one beach – as well as a standard of academic excellence that saw her teams lead in All-Academic honorees each year of her tenure.
Crockett-Moulton, a former professional volleyball player and member of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) All-Time Volleyball team, led FMU's indoor volleyball team to a Sun Conference Tournament title in 2019 – her first season leading the program.
After the COVID-19 pandemic wiped out the 2020 beach volleyball season, Crockett-Moulton built a roster for the 2021 season that earned the preseason No. 1 rank in The Sun Conference and lived up to the billing as the team captured the conference's inaugural conference tournament championship this past March.
The beach volleyball team also led the Sun Conference in total number of players on the Beach Volleyball TSC All-Academic list while the indoor team was among the leaders for total number of All-Academic honorees each season under Crockett-Moulton. Her assistant coach Jeffrey Hardman also thrived, as he was named to the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) 30 Under 30 Coaches Award list.
With the 2021 beach volleyball conference title in tow, Florida Memorial became not just the first and only historically Black college or university (HBCU) with a beach volleyball program but also the first and only one to win a conference championship.
In her three seasons, Crockett-Moulton compiled a 35-25 indoor volleyball record and a 6-16 beach volleyball record – with 10 of those beach volleyball losses coming against NCAA Division-I or Division-II teams.
"I'm extremely grateful for the opportunity that Florida Memorial gave me. Together we were able to bring home the first indoor [volleyball] championship and established the first-ever HBCU beach volleyball program, that also won a [conference] championship," said Crockett-Moulton, who also was a member of the AVCA 30 Under 30 Coaches Award list back in 2016.
"It's been a great partnership with the athletic department for three spectacular seasons. I will miss everyone…especially my colleagues, that I've grown to love while being here at Florida Memorial. I'm extremely honored to have been the head coach of such remarkable young women during my time here. I grew with them, and they taught me so much as a head coach and I'll keep those lessons with me always. It's my wish and hope that I continue to spread diversity in the sport of volleyball and continue to push it to levels that have never been reached before."
Information regarding the head volleyball coach position will be posted online at www.FMUniv.edu.
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