Story: AJ Nelson, Senior Staff Writer, WHoopDirt.com
BOSTON, MA – The following women’s college basketball coaches have been honored with the Week 14 WHoopDirt.com Coach of the Week Award, presented by Just Play Solutions. These coaches are now eligible for the WHoopDirt.com National Coach of the Year Award, presented by Just Play Solutions, which will be announced at the conclusion of the 2025-26 college basketball season.
This marks the sixth season of WHoopDirt.com’s Coach of the Week and Coach of the Year programs. This week’s winners are listed below, followed by all previous weekly honorees from earlier in the season.
To nominate coaches for future weeks, please email [email protected] with your selection(s).
The Week 14 winners are:
NCAA D1: Amaka Agugua-Hamilton – University of Virginia
With a huge road win over a top-10 opponent this past week, Coach Hamilton’s Cavaliers secured their 11th ACC victory of the season – the program’s most in over 25 years. Virginia traveled to No. 8 Louisville for a Sunday matchup at the KFC Yum! Center, where the Cardinals had been 67-1 against unranked ACC opponents. The Cavaliers knocked down a go-ahead three with just 13 seconds remaining and were able to hold on for a thrilling 72-71 victory, marking the first time since the 1999-2000 campaign that Virginia reached 11 ACC wins in a regular season. Now 19-8 (11-5 ACC) on the season, Virginia received votes in the latest AP Top-25 Poll. The Cavaliers will return to action on Thursday, when they host No. 21 North Carolina.
NCAA D2: Beth Jillson – Texas Woman’s University
Coach Jillson’s squad put on a defensive clinic this week, holding both opponents to 25% or under from the field in a pair of double-digit victories. On Tuesday, the 2nd-ranked Pioneers held UT Tyler to single-digits in all but one quarter, limiting the hosts to just 24.6% from the field in a 51-36 triumph. Remaining on the road on Saturday, Texas Woman’s allowed UT Dallas to convert on just 25.0% of their field goals in a 71-47 Pioneer victory. With the wins, TWU closed out its regular season road slate with a perfect 13-0 record for the first time in program history. Overall, the Pioneers are 24-1 and have won 23 consecutive games since their only loss on November 8. They will cap off the regular season with a couple of home games this week, beginning with a matchup against Texas A&M International on Thursday evening.
NCAA D3: Brian Morehouse – Hope College
Coach Morehouse’s 11th-ranked Flying Dutch are heading into the postseason with plenty of momentum after avenging both of their conference losses in emphatic fashion this past week. After an overtime loss at Albion in January, Hope quickly took control of Wednesday’s rematch, jumping out to a 42-20 halftime lead en route to a dominant 80-44 win that allowed the Flying Dutch to clinch the No. 2 seed in the MIAA Tournament. Back in action on Saturday, Hope was able to pick up an 89-58 victory over Trine, who had handed the Flying Dutch their first conference loss back in early January. With the wins, Hope closed out the regular season with a record of 22-3 (14-2 MIAA). Coach Morehouse’s squad now awaits the winner of Albion and Kalamazoo’s quarterfinal matchup in Friday evening’s semifinal.
NAIA: Jeff Nickel – Georgetown College (KY)
Coach Nickel’s Georgetown squad took down a couple of top-15 opponents this past week to finish out the regular season on a high note. The Tigers’ final regular season week consisted of games against No. 13 Lindsey Wilson and No. 5 Campbellsville – teams that had both beaten Georgetown earlier in the month. Georgetown, which received votes in the latest NAIA Top 25 Poll, first avenged its loss to Lindsey Wilson, picking up a 75-62 road win on Thursday. Back at home against Campbellsville on Saturday, the Tigers knocked down a go-ahead layup with just four seconds remaining to propel themselves to a thrilling 68-67 victory. With the wins, Georgetown closed out the regular season with a record of 21-7 (6-6 MSC). They will look to extend their winning streak to five when they face off with Campbellsville again on Friday afternoon.
JUCO: Mike Seney – Monroe University
Coach Mike Seney guided Monroe to a pair of blowout victories this past week, including one over a ranked opponent in a game that had added meaning for Seney. On Thursday, the Mustangs jumped out to a 29-4 lead after the first quarter at Lackawanna, never looking back en route to a 93-39 win. Following the win, Monroe returned home for a matchup against NJCAA DII No. 6 CCBC Essex – Coach Seney’s old squad – on Saturday afternoon. The Mustangs dominated from the opening tip, picking up a 93-61 victory and avenging an early season loss to the team Seney coached from 2019-2025. Now 21-6 on the season, Monroe has won 15 consecutive contests since a loss on December 4. The Mustangs will close out the regular season with a home matchup against Harford Community College on Thursday.
2025-26 WHoopDirt.com / Just Play Solutions Coach of the Week Winners
NCAA DI: Geno Auriemma – University of Connecticut
NCAA DII: Tim Kirby – Harding University
NCAA DIII: Melissa Smeltzer-Kraft – Shenandoah University
NAIA: Bill Harmsen – Dordt University
JUCO: Jaleel Taylor – Union College (NJ)
NCAA DI: Vic Schaefer – University of Texas
NCAA DII: Johnette Walker – Newberry College
NCAA DIII: Meg Barber – New York University
NAIA: DeWayne Burroughs – Shawnee State University
JUCO: Nicole Collier – State Fair Community College
NCAA DI: Molly Miller – Arizona State University
NCAA DII: Tasha Diesselhorst – Northwestern Oklahoma State University
NCAA DIII: Megan Phelps – Bowdoin College
NAIA: DeWitt Mandley – Wiley University
JUCO: Damel Ling – Monroe University – Bronx
NCAA DI: Linda Cimino – Dartmouth College
NCAA DII: Travis Ponton – Queens College
NCAA DIII: Julie Prichett – Brandeis University
NAIA: David Moe – Dakota State University
JUCO: Madonna Thompson – Shelton State Community College
NCAA DI: Krista Gerlich – Texas Tech University
NCAA DII: Heather Macy – Nova Southeastern University
NCAA DIII: Gabby Holko – Susquehanna University
NAIA: Suntana Anderson – Marian University (IN)
JUCO: Mitch Rolls – Chipola College
Week 6
Winter Break – No Winners Selected
Week 7
Winter Break – No Winners Selected
NCAA DI: Greg Todd – Eastern Kentucky University
NCAA DII: Emry Tsitouris – Lenoir-Rhyne University
NCAA DIII: Alison Montgomery – Bates College
NAIA: Abby Stutts – Freed-Hardeman University
JUCO: Chelsea Waters – Tallahassee State College
NCAA DI: Destinee Rogers – Arkansas State University
NCAA DII: Emilee Thiesse – Minnesota State University, Mankato
NCAA DIII: Maureen Hirt – Denison University
NAIA: Jessica Garriga – William Carey University
JUCO: Chelsey Warburton – Utah State University Eastern
NCAA DI: Jan Jensen – University of Iowa
NCAA DII: Danielle Fleming – PennWest Clarion
NCAA DIII: Ben O’Brien – University of Scranton
NAIA: Jamarra Robinson – Stillman College
JUCO: Marvin Evans – Harford Community College
NCAA DI: Cori Close – University of California, Los Angeles
NCAA DII: Paul Honsinger – Eckerd College
NCAA DIII: David Chadbourne – University of Southern Maine
NAIA: Ethan Whaley – Indiana Wesleyan University
JUCO: Doug Haynes – Community College of Rhode Island
NCAA DI: Dawn Thornton – Alabama A&M University
NCAA DII: Taylor Wagner – Colorado Mesa University
NCAA DIII: Kelly McNiff – University of Wisconsin – Platteville
NAIA: Matt Moore – Columbia College (MO)
JUCO: Bart Walker – Northwest Florida State College
NCAA DI: Brenda Frese – University of Maryland
NCAA DII: Carrie Lohr – Wayne State University
NCAA DIII: Rodney Rogan – Johns Hopkins University
NAIA: Jacob Roark – Faulkner University
JUCO: Jonathan Denney – Southwestern Illinois College
