A new face on the sidelines. Familiar faces on the court.
For her first year as head coach at the University of North Florida, Abby Gilleland doesn't plan to turn the volleyball roster upside down. In fact, nearly the entire roster is sticking around.
"When I first met with them, I said, 'Hey, change is hard, and all of you are going to process it in different ways,'" Gilleland said. "I really just wanted them to embrace that and feel comfortable, and I think the biggest way is just building that trust and consistency."
With an emphasis on positive relationships and developing the whole player, Gilleland opened a new era as the Ospreys' next head coach at UNF Arena on Feb. 10.
"We'll work with excellence, compete with toughness and do things the right way," she said.
Gilleland takes over for Kristen Wright, who resigned from the position in December after eight seasons as the all-time victory leader in Osprey history. Wright finished 117-122 at UNF and recorded the school's best ASUN regular-season finish, second, in 2021.
The former assistant coach, general manager and camp director for the University of Florida during the past year, Gilleland was a part of the Gators' run to the NCAA Tournament second round in 2025.
Before her Gators role, Gilleland served as an assistant at William & Mary (2016), Tennessee-Chattanooga (2017-18), UConn (2019-21) and Marquette (2022-24). In her playing career, she was a standout at Ohio University.
"She carries herself with confidence, with calm and inspires trust," UNF athletic director Nick Morrow said.
Morrow said he's confident that Gilleland can bring the Ospreys a first ASUN championship and NCAA Tournament berth.
For the new coach, the championship finish begins with the mental approach.
"I want them to think we're champions in every respect, in the way we carry ourselves, in the way we treat others," Gilleland said.
The Ospreys finished 14-17 in the 2025 season and went 7-9 in ASUN Conference competition, losing to Central Arkansas in the second round.
Gilleland said she expects to begin assembling her coaching staff soon, ideally in February. She said about 15 members of the current Ospreys roster are expected to return for 2026, a relative rarity in the transfer portal era. In the coming weeks, she said, UNF will roll out its spring exhibition calendar, working toward the full schedule that begins in August.
Gilleland described her first head coaching opportunity as a "dream job" that "checked every box."
"The moment I stepped on the campus, it was really clear," she said. "When you get to feel and witness those relationships, I think that's a really big consideration."
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: University of North Florida volleyball hires coach Abby Gilleland