Hall of Fame
Holt contributed to the well-being of Austin Peay State University for 35 years serving in many roles including volleyball, tennis, softball and women’s basketball coach, assistant athletics directors and Senior Woman Administrator. She was a pioneer in the Title IX movement, not only for Austin Peay but also for the OVC. She also was a champion for student-athlete’s rights and causes, a powerful voice on countless committees and her teams consistently excelled in the classroom.
Holt received her master’s degree from APSU and returned to campus in 1982 as the third volleyball coach in school history, while also taking over duties as the women’s tennis head coach. She would hold the title of tennis coach until 1985, when she was asked to launch the Austin Peay softball program, serving as the Lady Govs head coach for two years. She would also later serve as an assistant women’s basketball coach for one season (1984), after an assistant left mid-year. In 1997 she became the department’s first Senior Woman Administrator and in 2003 assumed an assistant athletics director role, as spot she held until her retirement in 2017.
As volleyball coach (1982-2004) Holt compiled 364 victories and 19 consecutive OVC Tournament appearances in 23 years. She was named OVC Coach of the Year four times (1986, 1987, 1991, 1992) and won the 1991 OVC Tournament Championship (becoming the first APSU women’s program to win an OVC tournament banner).
In 2012 she became just the third female coach/administrator inducted into the Austin Peay Hall of Fame. In 2011 the Lady Govs Softball Field was named Cheryl Holt Field in her honor.