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July 29, 2002--Cindy Gregory, who served the last seven seasons as assistant coach at the University of Massachusetts, has been named assistant women's volleyball coach at the University of Delaware, first-year Blue Hen head coach Bonnie Kenny announced Friday, July 26.
Gregory, who served under Kenny during her entire tenure at Massachusetts, joins a staff that also includes second-year graduate assistant coach Sara Pohl. The Blue Hens will begin the Kenny era Aug. 30-31 when they open the 2002 season at the University of Miami (Ohio) Tournament.
"Cindy and I have worked together for the past seven seasons," Kenny said in announcing the hiring. "She has tremendous knowledge of the game and brings a variety of experience to our program here at Delaware. She will assist in all aspects of the program. I look forward to carrying on our working relationship and taking Delaware volleyball to new heights. She will be a tremendous asset."
A native of Houston, Texas, Gregory earned 13 letters in basketball, cross country, track and field and volleyball, and earned high school All-America and All-State honors in volleyball at Clear Lake High School.
Gregory began her college career at the University of Houston, where she played two seasons and led the Cougars to the 1979 and 1980 national AIAW tournaments. The 1979 squad placed fourth nationally.
She transferred to Southwest Missouri State University, where she played two seasons and led the team to a fifth place finish at the 1981 AIAW national tournament and an NCAA tournament berth in 1982. The squad also captured two Gateway Conference titles during her career.
She earned her degree in physical education with a minor in biology from Southwest Missouri State in 1983 and earned a master's degree in exercise physiology from Texas Women's University in 1986.
She began her coaching career as a graduate assistant at Texas Women's University in Denton, Texas, in 1984-86 before moving into a head coaching position at Marymount University in Arlington, Va., in 1987-89.
She served as assistant coach at Smith College in Northampton, Mass., in 1989-91 and returned to the head coaching ranks at Clark University in Worcester, Mass., for the 1991-92 season. She also served a two-year stint as head coach at The MacDuffie School in Springfield, Mass., in 1990-92 while also serving at Smith and Clark.
Gregory took over as head coach for men's and women's volleyball at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and led both teams to national prominence during her tenure in 1992-95. She guided the men's program to a third-place finish at the NCAA Division III Tournament in 1993. On the women's side, she led MIT to the ECAC regional tournament in 1993 and to the New England Women's Eight Conference title and an NCAA tournament berth in 1994.
She was named the New England Women's Eight Conference Coach of the Year and New England Women's Volleyball Association District Coach of the Year in 1993.
She teamed with Kenny to lead UMass to a seven-year record of 125-93 from 1995-2001. Massachusetts recorded five winning seasons, including marks of 28-9 in 1996 and 24-15 in 1995. The 1996 team advanced to the National Invitational Volleyball Championships in Kansas City, Mo.
In addition to her coaching duties, Gregory is active professionally, having published articles in several national journals. She also has been active with the NCAA YES program and with Special Olympics and has served on the Women's Sports Foundation Advisory Board since 1991.
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