EMMITSBURG,
Md. –
Mount St. Mary’s University has named Bryan Whitten the new head
women’s basketball coach. Terms of the contract are not disclosed.
Whitten a 1991 King's graduate and former member of the Monarch men's
basketball team, becomes the fifth head coach in the 33-year history of the
Mount’s women’s basketball program after Rev. James Delaney (45-30,
1974-78), Fred Carter (60-32, 1978-81), Bill Sheahan (372-104, 1981-98)
and Vanessa Blair (120-135, 1998-07).
The Mountaineers rank in the
Top-50 in NCAA history in wins (557) and winning percentage (.664) and
the team needs three victories for the 600th win in program
history.
“Bryan Whitten brings
his success story to the Mount which includes a proven track record from
his time at both King’s College and Virginia Commonwealth University,”
said Mount St. Mary’s President Dr. Thomas H. Powell. “We couldn’t be
happier to be adding Bryan to our Mount athletic family.”
Whitten inherits a team
that returns two starters and three letterwinners including two-time
Northeast Conference Defensive Player of the Year Tiffany Green
(Arlington, Va./Washington-Lee) along with six newcomers. The Mount went
12-17 overall last season and 10-8 in NEC play, finishing tied for
fourth in the league.
“After a lengthy search
with an excellent pool of candidates, we are very pleased to bring
someone of Bryan’s talent and experience to the Mount,” said Lynne
Robinson, the Interim Director of Athletics and Co-Chair of the Women’s
Basketball Head Coach Search Committee. “Bryan is a proven winner as a
head coach and he is a tireless recruiter. I am confident that Bryan has
the leadership ability and drive to take our women’s basketball program
back to the upper echelons of the Northeast Conference.”
Whitten comes to
Emmitsburg after serving as a women’s basketball assistant coach at
Virginia Commonwealth University for the last two seasons. In his
two-year tenure at Virginia Commonwealth, Whitten coached the 2005-06
Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) Rookie of the Year and helped the
Rams to a 30-28 record, including a 17-13 mark while the team advanced
to the CAA quarterfinals in 2006-07.
"I am very honored and
excited to be the new women's basketball coach at Mount St. Mary's
University,” said Whitten. “There is a strong tradition of success here
and I look forward to the opportunity of continuing and building on that
tradition. I would like to thank President Powell, Vice President Dan
Soller, and Athletic Director Lynne Robinson for their confidence and
for this great opportunity. I've met with the team and they are all
pretty enthusiastic about the upcoming season. I'm really looking
forward to being their coach. We are all anxious and excited to get
things started and about the future of Mount St. Mary's basketball!”
Prior to his time in
Richmond, Va., Whitten was the head women’s basketball coach at King’s
College, a Division III program in Wilkes-Barre, Pa. He spent 12 seasons
at the helm of the Lady Monarchs, amassing a 220-103 record and guided
the team 10-straight winnings seasons, 11-consecutive Middle
Atlantic/Freedom Conference (MAC) Tournament berths, two MAC Freedom
Conference titles and four trips to the NCAA Division III national
tournament from 2000-03.
“The journey to being a
Division I head coach has been long and there are many people who have
helped me get to this point,” said Whitten. “I'd like to thank the late
John Dorish, who was the AD at King's College and gave me my first
opportunity to be a college head coach, and the entire King's community
for the their continual support; Beth Cunningham, the head coach at
Virginia Commonwealth, who gave me the opportunity to become a Division
I coach, and Mike Brey, head coach at Notre Dame, for his consistent
advice and support. I'd also like to thank my former players at King's
College whose loyalty, support, friendship and love have continued to
inspire me. Lastly, and most importantly, I want to thank my family,
especially my parents and my wife Angie, for their never ending
confidence, guidance, support and love."
Whitten coached one Columbus Multi-Media Division
III National Player of the Year, three finalists for the Josten’s Trophy
“National Player of the Year” Award, 23 all-conference players, five
Most Valuable Players, 14 Division III All-Americans and 15 ECAC
All-Stars. Also, Whitten coached Heather Medashefski, a 1999 graduate of
King’s, who played professionally in Portugal. Whitten was named the MAC
Freedom Coach of the Year in 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001 and 2002.
In additions to his
team’s exploits on the court, Whitten’s players excelled off the court
as well. He had 44 players named to the MAC Freedom All-Academic Team
and five times his team ranked in the Women’s Basketball Coaches
Association Academic Top-25.
After starting the
first two years 15-34, Whitten led his alma mater to a 205-69 record in
his final 10 seasons. In 1995-96, his team went 14-11 and followed that
season up with a 17-10 mark before the Lady Monarchs produced the first
20-win season under Whitten with a 23-5 record and the squad won the
ECAC South Championship, the first postseason title in program history.
After an 18-9 year and
its third-straight ECAC Tournament appearance in 1998-99, Whitten led
King’s to four-straight NCAA Division III Tournament appearances. The
Lady Monarchs went 24-6 in 1990-00 and advanced to the NCAA Sweet 16
before falling to Scranton, who played in the national semifinals. The
team then won its first-ever MAC Freedom League title before losing to
the eventual national runner up Messiah in the NCAA Second Round with a
19-7 record in 2000-01.
Whitten then had his
best season in Wilkes-Barre in 2001-02 when his Lady Monarchs posted a
school-record 25-4 mark and advanced to the NCAA Elite Eight, falling to
Final Four bound Marymount. In the next season, King’s won its second
MAC Freedom crown and advanced to the NCAA Sweet 16, losing to the
eventual national runner up Eastern Connecticut.
In 2003-04, King’s
advanced to the MAC Freedom Conference Tournament championship game with
a 19-9 record before going 22-4 in Whitten’s final campaign with the
Lady Monarchs in 2004-05.
A native of Hockessin,
Del., Whitten started his coaching career as an assistant coach with the
women’s basketball team at King’s from 1989-92. Whitten then returned to
Delaware for one season to serve as an assistant coach at St. Mark’s
High School and co-head coach of the Delaware Patriot AAU Girl’s
14-Under squad, which finished among the top six schools in the Atlantic
Region.
Whitten and his wife
Angie were married on Sept. 24, 2005 and are expecting their first child
in January.
