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Fairfax, Va.- Uvaldo Acosta was born on May 16, 1965 on El Paso, Texas. Little did anyone know at the time that he would go on to make a significant impact on USA Volleyball and George Mason. Uvaldo would make the move to Fairfax, Virginia in 1986. 
 
A former player and coach at George Mason, Acosta quickly became a star the volleyball community.  

A three-time All-American for the Patriots (1986-88), Acosta led George Mason to the 1988 NCAA Final Four and set two tournament dig records in the process. He was a member of the U.S. National team from 1989-1992 and was named as an alternate to the 1992 Olympic team that competed in Barcelona. After playing, Acosta took over the helm of the George Mason program and in his second year as coach, the team started off with a 4-1 record, the best since the 1995 season.

Tragically, Acosta's promising coaching career was cut short. On February 12, 1998, during a team trip to Hawaii, Acosta drowned while swimming in the rough surf during the team's outing to the beach near the U.S. Marine base in Kaneohe.  He was only 32 years old. 

"Uvaldo Acosta was one of the most popular athletes ever to have represented the United States in men's volleyball," said Jim Coleman, the general manager of the USA National teams, at the time of Acosta's death. "He was a superb athlete who never lost the common touch … the ability to play an associate with the every-day volleyball player. Who was a fierce competitor who never lost the joy of playing the game."

"UV," as he was known, earned a World Cup bronze medal with the U.S. National team in 1992 and was named the "Best Defensive Player" as voted by the international press. He also competed in several prestigious tournaments, including the World Championships, the NORCECA Zone Championship and the Goodwill Games.
 
Acosta also assisted with the George Mason women's program, helping that squad to its fifth straight CAA title. In 1997 he took over the helm of the men's program, looking to employ his "innovative offensive ideas," according to his biography at the time on the Patriot's website. He was part of the EIVA Hall of Fame in 2012, the inaugural class. 
 
Acosta's legacy is remembered through various honors. He was posthumously inducted into the EIVA Hall of Fame in 2012. The EIVA Player of the Year award is named after Acosta, and each year George Mason holds the Uvaldo Acosta Memorial match to remember and honor their alumnus and coach.