BOULDER — Vowing to return the women’s volleyball program to the upper echelon of the Big 12 Conference, Colorado hired Liz Kritza, who knows all about rebuilding projects.
Kritza, 31, was head coach for the past four years at Tulane University in New Orleans. One match into her first season, Aug. 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina made landfall in Louisiana. After escaping to safety, her team eventually was relocated to Texas A&M, where it played the remainder of its “home” matches that season.
“I’m sure (they were) the most adverse conditions for a person, for a coach, for an athlete,” Kritza recalled at her introductory news conference Tuesday. “Going forward in my career, nothing (else) fazes me. I had a team that had nowhere to live. They had no idea where they were going to eat, no idea if they were going to be in school. We had no uniforms. We had no way to train our team. It was an amazing experience. I’m forever grateful to (Tulane) and to my players for moving forward.”
A native of Colorado Springs and a former all-stater at St. Mary’s High, Kritza agreed to a five-year contract that specifies an annual salary package of $142,200, including base pay, plus Nike sponsorship, summer camp income and a car allowance. Performance incentives and academics/community service incentives could boost her income by as much as $85,500 annually.
CU athletic director Mike Bohn said the multiyear contract, one of six available to the school, and the planned practice facility for basketball and volleyball that will be adjacent to the Coors Events Center, show the school’s commitment to the sport. The practice facility also will include the women’s volleyball operations center.
Kritza compiled a 76-39 record at Tulane, earning the American Volleyball Coaches Association Midwest region coach of the year honors in 2007 and 2008, after she guided the Green Wave to a 28-6 record both years. Tulane finished with a No. 13 RPI in 2008, compared to No. 119 for Colorado (13-16).
Under Kritza, Tulane earned its first Conference USA championship in women’s volleyball in 2008, earning a berth in the NCAA Tournament.
Kritza replaces Pi’i Aiu, who was fired in January after 12 seasons at Colorado. Aiu guided the Buffs to nine NCAA Tournament appearances, but CU had a losing record the past two seasons.
Aiu had been criticized for failing to successfully recruit many of the top in-state prospects.
“I grew up playing volleyball in Colorado. I’m a Colorado kid,” Kritza said. “I’m really committed to make it a priority that all the best volleyball players in Colorado are coming to the flagship university of this state.”
Tom Kensler: 303-954-1280 or tkensler@denverpost.com
