Buccaneer Athletic Tradition

Barry University is very young when it comes to intercollegiate athletics, but is a heavyweight when it comes to national success. Buccaneer Athletics is only entering its 24th year, but Barry has already won seven national championships -- three each in women's soccer and volleyball and one in men's golf. In addition, Barry has crowned 160 All-Americans in 13 different sports and 149 Scholar All-Americans, and has sent numerous teams and individuals to post-season playoffs and national championship competitions.

The Buccaneer athletic program is one of the most competitive in NCAA Division II. The men's and women's tennis teams have advanced to the NCAA Tournament 14 straight years, one more than volleyball for the most consecutive appearances in school history. The womens' soccer team's 18 tournament bids tops not only all Barry teams, but also all NCAA Division II women's soccer programs. Women's tennis has 15 total bids for second place at Barry.

The Bucs have advanced at least six of their 12 teams to NCAA post-season play in each of the last 11 years. In 2003-04, the Bucs set a school record with eight teams earning NCAA Tournament bids (men’s soccer, women’s soccer, volleyball, men’s tennis, women’s tennis, men’s golf, women’s golf and rowing). They tied that mark, sending eight teams to the post-season in 2005-06 (women's soccer, volleyball, women's golf, men's golf, rowing, softball, men's tennis and women's tennis).

In 2001-02, seven of the Bucs' 12 teams earned NCAA Tournament bids, led by the volleyball team which won the national championship. Women's golf posted a second-place finish in their first trip to the national finals. Women's tennis finished third for the second straight year. Rowing was fourth at the first-ever national championship regatta. Softball finished fifth in their third trip to the national finals. And the women's soccer and men's tennis teams each reached the regional finals. The Bucs earned 450 points in the Sears Director's Cup competition, breaking the mark of 355 they had set in 2000-01. Barry finished 11th overall in the competition and first among private institutions.

Barry's athletic program was guided to national prominence by Dr. G. Jean Cerra, who served as Director of Athletics from June 1991 until January 1998. Under her leadership, the Barry athletic program has attained overwhelming success at the conference, regional, and national levels. Barry has also gained acclaim for its emphasis on academics. More than 60% of Barry's athletes earned grade point averages of 3.0 or higher in 1999-2000. Dr. Cerra remains at Barry University as Dean for Human Performance and Leisure Science. She was inducted into the National Association for Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) Hall of Fame.

Michael L. Covone, who served as Associate Athletic Director for 10 years and guided the Bucs to three NCAA Division II National Championships in women's soccer, was named Director of Athletics in January of 1998.

The Buccaneers compete in the prestigious Sunshine State Conference (SSC). Barry has won 34 SSC titles in ten different sports since it joined the conference in 1988. The Buccaneers have also won the SSC Women's Mayors Cup All-Sports Trophy on five occasions, in 1990-91, 1996-97, 1999-00, 2001-02 and 2005-06. In 2006-07, the Buccaneer men finally claimed a Mayor's Cup of their own, as none of the five teams finished outside the top three in the conference.

Barry's coaches have also claimed 30 Sunshine State Conference Coach-of-the-Year awards and six National Coach-of-the-Year awards.

Barry University currently competes in 12 intercollegiate sports for men and women. Women's sports include basketball, golf, rowing, soccer, softball, tennis, and volleyball. Men's sports include baseball, basketball, golf, soccer, and tennis.