1999 UM Hall of Fame Inductee, Gary Van Atta is the winningest coach in UM women's basketball history with a 166-49 record over seven years. All six of the Lady Falcons' 20-win season occurred under the Van Atta regime, including a school-best 28-7 season in 1993-94.
In his first season as Lady Falcon head coach, Coach Van Atta led UM to a then record 24-6 mark. His lowest win total, 18-11 in 1990-91, ranks second among wins in season during a non-Van Atta coached year. While at Montevallo, Van Atta coached two All-Americans, including Peggy Keebler (2nd Team, 1989-90) and Sheena Bowling (Honorable Mention 1992-93 and First Team, 1993-94, 1994-95 and 1995-96).
Van Atta coached Lady Falcon teams that made five consecutive trips to the NAIA National Tournament from 1992-1996. In UM's first season in the Gulf South Conference, the 1995-96 Van Atta-led squad posted a 13-1 conference record, winning the GSC East Division regular season title. During that year, Montevallo also won a record 19 straight games to begin the season.
After leaving Montevallo during the summer of 1996, Van Atta went on to coach at Division I Tennessee-Martin.
