SPRINGFIELD, Mo.— Amy Eagan has been named as the next head coach for the Drury University women’s basketball program. Drury President Dr. Timothy Cloyd and Vice President & Director of Athletics Corey Bray announced Eagan on Monday after learning Molly Miller will be stepping down to become the head coach at Grand Canyon University. The NCAA Division I institution based in Phoenix, Arizona, announced on April 7 that Miller would be taking over that program.
Eagan was an assistant coach for Drury last year helping the Lady Panthers to a 32-0 record, a number one national ranking in NCAA-II throughout the year, a 20-0 mark in the Great Lakes Valley Conference, and the team’s fourth straight GLVC championship.
“Amy is the right choice to lead this team, and continue the long tradition of excellence the Drury Lady Panthers program is known for,” said Dr. Cloyd. “She will ensure our continued success on the court, and I am confident she will uphold our tradition of recruiting high-achieving student-athletes who will succeed in the classroom and in the community as well.”
Eagan came to Drury after a successful tenure as the head coach at Truman State. In six seasons with the Bulldogs, she became the program’s all-time leader in career coaching wins and winning percentage posting a mark of 111-62 (.642). In her final season as head coach at Truman State in 2018-19, she led the Bulldogs to a 23-8 record, a 13-5 record in the GLVC, and an NCAA-II tournament appearance. It was the best finish in the program’s 46-year history. In 2014, Eagan guided Truman State to a GLVC championship as the team went 22-9, 12-6 in the league, and then took the Lady Panthers to overtime in the opening round of the NCAA-II tournament on Drury’s floor.
Prior to this season, Truman State has had five 20-win seasons, and Eagan was the head coach for three of them during her six-year tenure and was part of another one as a player. She has coached 10 all-conference performers with four named to the First Team, recruited two Freshman of the Year selections (Katie Jaseckas in 2018, and Hannah Belanger in 2020), and coached three All-GLVC Tournament picks, including Tournament MVP Bianca Szafarowicz in 2014.
Her teams also posted a 100 percent graduation rate, a 3.4-grade point average as a team, produced 17 All-Academic performers in the GLVC, and the 2014 Truman State Student-Athlete of the Year.
“I am thrilled that coach Eagan will be the next head coach of the Lady Panthers,” said Bray. “When she came to Drury last summer, she brought great experience as a head coach that contributed to her serving as an integral part of the success the program achieved this past season. That previous head coaching experience, combined with her experience on coach Miller’s staff this past season, has set the stage for her future success leading the Lady Panthers program.
“I am confident that coach Eagan will lead a program that will continue to be more than champions in the classroom, in the community, and in competition. Lady Panthers fans, please join me in congratulating Coach Eagan on becoming the next head coach of the Drury University women’s basketball program!”
Outgoing head coach Molly Miller stated she was excited for her former assistant and for the future of the Lady Panthers program.
“Amy Eagan is a perfect fit to become the next head coach of the Drury University Lady Panthers,” said Miller. “Her winning record as a player and a former head coach is impressive. Her work ethic and loyalty are unmatched, and her outstanding character sets the bar high. She carries herself with class and poise, and I was so proud to have her by my side last year. I am thrilled coach Eagan will be taking the helm at Drury, and I sincerely wish her the best of luck. The Drury women’s basketball program is in great hands, and this alum couldn’t be happier!”
Eagan meanwhile will look to enter her 12th season as a collegiate head coach.
“I want to thank Drury University President Dr. Cloyd, Director of Athletics Corey Bray, and the Board of Trustees for this amazing opportunity,” said Eagan. “Words cannot express my sincere gratitude and excitement to lead this storied program into the future. I am blessed to become a part of the rich tradition of the Drury Lady Panther basketball program. Getting to know the players, boosters, and the Drury community this past year is why I am thankful to make this program my home. I am committed to ensuring that these young women are champions on and off the court. I also want to give a very special thank you to Molly Miller for what she has done for this program and myself. She will always be a part of us as her legacy in this program will carry on.”
Before her return to Truman State as a head coach, Eagan led the women’s basketball program at Ashford University in Iowa from 2010-2013 and helped turn around an NAIA program that won only four games in her first season, to a near-.500 record of 14-17 just two years later.
As head coach at Saint Ambrose (Iowa) from 2005-07, she put together a 48-17 record in two seasons, and was named the Midwest Collegiate Conference Coach of the Year in 2007 as her team went 26-7, 14-0 in league play, and advanced to the NAIA-II tournament.
Eagan worked as an assistant coach at Quincy University from 2001-05 and helped the Hawks to a 96-32 record over four seasons. During her time on the Quincy bench, the team made three trips to the NCAA-II tournament, back-to-back GLVC championships in 2004 and 2005, and an Elite Eight appearance in 2004.
In addition to her accomplishments as a coach, Eagan also had a stellar playing career at Truman State. She was a four-time selection to the All-Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association team and still ranks fourth on the Bulldogs all-time scoring list with 1,527 points. Eagan is the program’s career leader in assists (529), steals (328), steals per game (3.3), free throws made (483), and free throws attempted (704). She set Truman State’s single-game scoring record with 46 points against Southern Indiana during the 1998-99 season and was named an honorable mention All-American year. After graduating from Truman State, Eagan embarked on a professional playing career in Norway and was inducted into the Truman State Hall of Fame in 2012.
As a high school player, Eagan was a standout at South Shelby High School in northeast Missouri and was voted to the All-State team in Class 2.
She earned a degree in Exercise Science from Truman State in 2001 and a Master’s Degree in Organizational Management from Ashford University in 2012.
Amy Eagan will be the fifth head coach in program history at Drury.
The Drury Lady Panthers have an all-time record of 520-109 (.817) since their inception in 2000-2001. They have made 17 appearances in the NCAA-II tournament, won nine conference championships, captured four regional titles, have advanced to the national semifinals twice, and they were the NCAA-II Runner-Up in 2004.
By: Ed Beach, Assistant AD for External Affairs/Media Relations
Tagged with: D2 GLVC
