Tara Cross-Battle (born September 16, 1968) is a retired

volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...

player from the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

who competed in four

Summer Olympics The Summer Olympic Games, also known as the Summer Olympics or the Games of the Olympiad, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inaugural Games took place in 1896 in Athens, then part of the King ...

overall, starting in 1992. Cross-Battle won the bronze medal with the United States women's national team at the

1992 Summer Olympics The 1992 Summer Olympics (, ), officially the Games of the XXV Olympiad (, ) and officially branded as Barcelona '92, were an international multi-sport event held from 25 July to 9 August 1992 in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. Beginning in 1994 ...

Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

. Her last Olympic appearance was at the

2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad (), and officially branded as Athens 2004 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 13 to 29 August 2004 in Athens, Greece. The Games saw 10,625 athletes ...

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

. While representing the United States, Cross-Battle won a bronze medal at the 1990 FIVB World Championship in China and a silver medal at the 2002 FIVB World Championship in Germany. She also won a bronze medal at the 2003 FIVB World Cup in Japan. For her career achievements in volleyball, Cross-Battle was inducted into the

International Volleyball Hall of Fame The International Volleyball Hall of Fame (IVHF) was founded to honor extraordinary players, coaches, officials, and leaders who have made significant contributions to the game of volleyball. The Hall of Fame is located in Holyoke, Massachusetts ...

in 2014.

College

Cross-Battle played NCAA women's volleyball for

Long Beach State University California State University, Long Beach (CSULB), also known in athletics as Long Beach State University (LBSU), is a public teaching-focused institution in Long Beach, California, United States. The 322-acre campus is the second largest in the ...

, where she led her team to the 1989 NCAA Championship title. She was selected as the AVCA Player of the Year in 1988 and 1989. In 1990, she won the Honda-Broderick Award (now the

Honda Sports Award The Honda Sports Award is an annual award in the United States, given to the best collegiate female athlete in each of twelve sports. There are four nominees for each sport, and the twelve winners of the Honda Sports Award are automatically in t ...

) as the nation's best female collegiate volleyball player. She set the NCAA record for career kills with 2,767, and was a four-time All-American. In 1995, Cross-Battle was inducted into the Long Beach State Hall of Fame.

Coaching

Cross-Battle is currently coaching at the Houston Juniors Volleyball Club. She has also worked with the Texas Tornados Volleyball Club and the Texas Pride Volleyball Club.

Clubs

* Pallavolo Ancona (1992–1995) *

Leites Nestlé Leites Nestlé or Leite Moça was a Brazilian women's volleyball club representing Sorocaba and Jundiaí, SP, winner of the 1994 FIVB Volleyball Women's Club World Championship. The team played the home games at the Ginásio de Esportes Dr. Nico ...

(1996–1999) * Paraná Vôlei Clube (1999–2000) * Flamengo (2000–2001) *

Volley Bergamo Volley Bergamo is an Italian women's volleyball club based in Bergamo and currently playing in the Serie A1. Previous names Due to sponsorship, the club have competed under the following names: * Volley Bergamo (1991–1992) * Foppapedretti Ber ...

(2001–2002) * Reggio Emilia (2002–2003)

International competitions

* 1990 – Goodwill Games (5th place) * 1990 – World Championship (bronze) * 1991 – NORCECA Championships (silver) * 1991 – World Cup (4th place) * 1992 – Summer Olympics (bronze) * 1992 – FIVB Super Four (bronze) * 1993 – NORCECA Championships (silver) * 1993 – World Grand Prix (7th place) * 1993 – FIVB Grand Champions Cup (4th place) * 1994 – World Grand Prix (6th place) * 1994 – World Championship (6th place) * 1995 – Pan American Games (silver) * 1995 – Canada Cup (gold) * 1995 – World Grand Prix (gold) * 1995 – World Cup (7th place) * 1996 – Summer Olympics (7th place) * 2000 – Summer Olympics (4th place) * 2001 – NORCECA Championships (gold) * 2001 – World Grand Prix (gold) * 2002 – World Championship (silver) * 2002 – World Grand Prix (6th place) * 2003 – World Grand Prix (bronze) * 2003 – World Cup (bronze) * 2004 – World Grand Prix (bronze) * 2004 – Summer Olympics (5th place)

Individual awards

* Four-time All-American * 1990 – Honda-Broderick Award * 1995 – Long Beach State Hall of Fame * 2001 – NORCECA Championship "Most Valuable Player" * 2014 – International Volleyball Hall of Fame

References

External links

International Volleyball Hall of Fame

*
Olympedia profile: Tara Cross-Battle

Long Beach State Hall of Fame profile

Volleybox.net profile
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cross-Battle, Tara 1968 births Living people American women's volleyball players Volleyball players at the 1992 Summer Olympics Volleyball players at the 1996 Summer Olympics Volleyball players at the 2000 Summer Olympics Volleyball players at the 2004 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1992 Summer Olympics Olympic bronze medalists for the United States in volleyball Sportspeople from Houston Long Beach State Beach women's volleyball players Volleyball players at the 1995 Pan American Games Medalists at the 1995 Pan American Games Pan American Games silver medalists for the United States in volleyball 21st-century American sportswomen International Volleyball Hall of Fame inductees 20th-century American sportswomen