TAMPA — University of South Florida Athletics will add women's lacrosse to its list of highly-successful women's sports programs Vice President of Athletics Michael Kelly announced today, bringing the total number of Bulls' women's athletics teams to 11 and USF's total varsity sports program count to 20.
 
The addition of women's lacrosse will mark the first new women's program added at USF since women's soccer in 1995. Women's lacrosse is the first addition in a planned expansion of USF's female varsity athletics sports offerings.
 
Women's varsity athletics began at USF in 1972 with the start of the women's basketball program. USF women's athletics programs have won 59 conference championship trophies. USF's conference titles in women's athletics have come from eight different sports, including tennis (13), volleyball (12), softball (8), soccer (7), golf (6), track and field (6), cross country (5) and basketball (2).
 
"The addition of women's lacrosse as a new sport at the University of South Florida is an example of how we are committed to excellence and inclusiveness in all aspects of the university – including our athletic programs," University of South Florida Interim President Rhea Law said. "This will provide more opportunities for women student-athletes to be part of the university community and thrive."
 
A spring competition season sport, USF women's lacrosse is slated to begin competing in the 2023-24 season. There are 117 schools that currently sponsor NCAA Division I women's lacrosse, and it is one of the fastest-growing sports in the nation; particularly in the Southeastern United States. The Bulls' team will play home games at Corbett Stadium on the USF campus (the current home of USF soccer), with plans to move to an on-campus stadium in future seasons.

A search for a head coach to lead the women's lacrosse program will begin in early 2022. USF will compete in the American Athletic Conference, which began a women's lacrosse league in 2019 and currently features six programs in Cincinnati, Florida, East Carolina, Old Dominion, Temple and Vanderbilt.
 
"We have a very proud and successful history of women's sports programs and female student-athletes competing at a very high level and winning championships at USF," Vice President of Athletics Michael Kelly said. "USF is a destination for successful female collegiate athletes, and we are very excited to add a highly entertaining and growing sport in women's lacrosse. We will be very competitive both within our conference and nationally and will invest the necessary resources to be so."
 
"USF has a history of providing tremendous opportunities for female student-athletes and seeing those student-athletes, coaches and teams achieve great success," Senior Associate Athletic Director/Senior Woman Administrator Marquita Armstead said. "We are committed to further enhancing the opportunities and support for women in athletics at USF and look forward to identifying a dynamic leader for our women's lacrosse program in the not-too-distant future."
 
In 2020, USF launched the Stampede for Women fundraising campaign specifically targeted at raising funds to add further support and opportunities for the Bulls' female student-athletes and teams. Information on the fund or contributions can be made HERE.