South Florida again aimed high in a national coaching search and lured a rising assistant with a championship pedigree from an elite program.
Jo Kremer was hired Saturday to take over the Bulls’ second-year beach volleyball team after three years at Stanford, this past season’s NCAA national runner-up to UCLA.
On X, USF CEO of Athletics Rob Higgins called Kremer “the perfect leader” to build the team into a “perennial national contender and to lead us to championships.”
“Her game plan and vision for our program and our student-athletes are second to none,” Higgins said.
Kremer replaces the program’s first coach, Pri Piantadosi-Lima, who abruptly resigned May 15 after leading the Bulls to a 21-15 record in their first varsity season. Higgins cited only “personal reasons” for the departure.
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Within days, Higgins’ ensuing search focused on Kremer, who said she was “deeply honored and humbled to have the opportunity.”
“I share their vision for the future of USF Athletics, especially their belief in women's sports and their commitment to the student-athlete experience,” Kremer said in a statement. “I am extremely excited about the roster and look forward to supporting these unbelievable young women on and off the sand.”
Like recently hired football coach Brian Hartline, 39, Kremer brings a strong resume to an athletics department enjoying significant financial administration support – with a new on-campus facility in the works. USF will open a lighted, six-court beach volleyball facility this fall.
With Kremer as an assistant and scouting coordinator, the Cardinal reached the NCAA tournament three consecutive seasons. This year’s squad went 39-5, won the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation title and earned the No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament.
Three Cardinal players – Avery Jackson (first team), Kelly Belardi (first team) and Ruby Sorra (second team) – were American Volleyball Coaches Association All-Americans.
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As a player, the native of Pacific Palisades, California, won three national titles at Southern California (NCAA in 2016 and 2017, AVCA in 2015). She was an all-NCAA tournament pick after the 2016 final and the Pac-12 Scholar-Athlete of the Year in 2018.
Stanford head coach Andrew Fuller, who coached Kremer as an assistant at USC, hired her from Tulane, where she spent one season as an assistant coach responsible for video and statistics.
“Jo has developed an array of tools to help student-athletes reach their peak performance, from mental skills training to on-court training structure,” Fuller said after Kremer's hiring in 2023. “From current players, to recruits and alums, Jo's ability to relate to people is outstanding.”
Piantadosi-Lima, a longtime Tampa Bay resident, was hired by then-Athletic Director Michael Kelly in 2023 to build the USF program from scratch, including roster development and a practice season in 2024-25.
