Nov. 17, 2004

Former West Texas A&M University volleyball coach Kim Hudson will lead the University of South Carolina Gamecocks into the Southeastern Conference volleyball tournament this weekend without five players, who were suspended Wednesday from the team for violation of team and university policies and another for a display of unsportsmanlike conduct.

Hudson's Lady Buffs won the NCAA Division-II national championship in 1990 and she compiled a 127-25 record at WTAMU from 1987-1990. She also was head coach at Northern Arizona University from 1991-1992, and has been head coach at South Carolina since 1993.

She started the season with a collegiate coaching record of 384-162. The Gamecocks started the season with a 7-2 record but finished 12-13 (5-11 SEC), leaving her four wins shy of 400. USC will face #1 seed Florida (23-3, 15-1 SEC) and the 10th-ranked team in the nation at 6:00 p.m. (CST) Friday at Gainesville, Fla.

According to the uscsports.com website, Hudson said, "Due to some unfortunate circumstances, we have had to suspend five of our student-athletes for the SEC Tournament for violating team and university policies. It disappoints me that the players have put me in this position to have to impose these types of sanctions for their lack of responsible judgment."

In 12 seasons with South Carolina Hudson has a record of 226-131, and are just 24-31 the past two seasons. The only other losing record she has had was in her initial year at 15-18.

Prior to coaching at WTAMU, she was the head coach at Amarillo, Texas, High School, her alma mater. In 1986 the Lady Sandies finished in the state finals with a record of 35-2, and was the first-ever Panhandle Sports Hall of Fame Volleyball Coach of the Year, which was also awarded to her the next year for her efforts at WT with a 25-7 record, breaking a string of three consecutive losing seasons.

-WT-