Hall of Fame
Possessing tremendous athletic ability with an explosive playing style and affable personality, Georgette Crawford was a dominant outside hitter on California University’s powerful women’s volleyball teams of the early 1990s.
Originally from Kingston, Jamaica, and a 1990 graduate of St. Hughes High School, Crawford was a three-year starter for the Vulcans from 1992 through 1994, playing under head coaches Jing Pu and Karen Hjerpe.
Success was immediate for both Cal U and Crawford.
Despite being a marked team as defending conference champions in 1992, Cal U rolled to a school-best 36-3 overall record and won its first-ever PSAC West title with a perfect 10-0 divisional mark. The division title enabled Cal U to host the PSAC Final Four tourney in Hamer Hall.
Cal U volleyball became the first women’s athletic team in school history to win consecutive state championships when the Vulcans swept Shippensburg and then outlasted Edinboro in a classic four-game title match (17-15, 16-14, 16-18, 16-14). Crawford received first-team, all-conference and all-division honors as well as being named to the PSAC Final Four all-tourney squad.
During her junior season, Cal went 27-11 overall with a third-straight appearance in the PSAC playoffs. Crawford again made the all-conference and all-division all-star teams as well as four regular season all-tourney teams. She was also one of only 12 players selected to the NCAA Atlantic Region all-tourney team.
Cal enjoyed a fourth-straight winning season overall in 1994 as Crawford again made all the NCAA Regional all-tourney team as well as four regular season all-tourney squads.
As she looks back on her Cal U playing career, the camaraderie she experienced with her teammates stands out more than any particular match or honor.
“The biggest thing I remember is my teammates,” Crawford said. “We never had any conflicts and just enjoyed playing. We all got along great and really supported each other. You don’t see as much of that today.”
Before her amazing three-year career at Cal, Crawford attended St. Augustine’s College in Raleigh, North Carolina, for one season. In 1990-91, Crawford was voted the Falcons’ Most Valuable Freshman as well as the co-Most Valuable Player of the nationally-respected CIAA Conference.
“We won a lot at St. Augustine’s but when I saw the California team I realized that is where I wanted to go to school,” said Crawford. “They were the only team to beat us at that tournament and I could tell that I could learn and develop more there.”
After serving as an assistant coach under Hjerpe for three seasons, Crawford moved on to High Point University in North Carolina, a Division I NCAA school that competes in the Big South Conference. She was an assistant coach for one year and had been the Panthers’ head coach for each of the past four seasons. While serving as High Point’s head coach, Crawford was a member of the American Volleyball Coaches Association’s Top 25 voting panel. She was one of just 65 coaches nationwide to serve on the panel. Crawford guided the program into the NCAA Division I level. She resigned last December to become the assistant volleyball coach at North Carolina A & T where she is also pursuing her Ph.D.
“Being the head coach was a great experience,” Crawford said. “The program just moved into Division I when I got there so I could not really recruit at that level until my second year. High Point’s athletic administration was very thankful and appreciative when I changed jobs. It was just the right time for me to move on. I am also really glad to be able to work on my Ph.D. and further my education.”
Crawford credited both her college coaches for her extraordinary playing and coaching success.
“Playing with Jing Pu was an awesome experience,” Crawford said. “Then I learned so much from Karen. She is the one who got me into coaching and showed me the ropes. I am very grateful to her. I love volleyball and coaching has become a wonderful career for me.”
Pu moved on to Central Connecticut and then Syracuse while Hjerpe has been Cal U’s senior Women’s Administrator for 10 years.
While playing and coaching at Cal, Crawford earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration in 1994 and a MBA in 1996. While coaching at High Point, she completed her M.Ed. from Cal U in 1999.
“I am always telling my players about my days at Cal U,” Crawford said. “I had a great time there and will never forget it. Cal is where I got my start in education and volleyball.”
Still an active and effective outside hitter nine years after her collegiate playing days concluded, Crawford has been the captain of the Jamaica Women’s National Volleyball Senior Team for the past five years. She has played and been affiliated with the Jamaica Women’s National Team for the past 20 years. Always energetic and enthusiastic, Crawford has also played the past six years with the United States Volleyball Association’s (USVBA) North Carolina Region.
While her stellar play deservedly earned her Cal U’s most prestigious athletic honor, Crawford did not initially believe that she was selected.
“When Wayne (Miller) called me I thought he was joking to be honest,” said Crawford. “I thought maybe years down the road I might have a chance but I did not expect this so soon. Especially when you look at the previous Hall of Fame classes on the website. It’s a great honor to be included with these people. I am definitely looking forward to coming back.”
The daughter of Pershia and Owen Lynch, Georgette resides in Greensboro, North Carolina.
