Cleveland State women’s basketball head coach Chris Kielsmeier announced the addition of two assistant coaches for the upcoming 2023-24 season, as Melissa Jackson has joined the staff and Shelby Zoeckler has been promoted to this new role.
MELISSA JACKSON
Jackson comes to Cleveland State with 19 years of collegiate coaching experience, including 15 years in Northeast Ohio. Most recently, Jackson served as the head coach at Akron, where she led the Zips to a pair of postseason appearances and the best winning percentage in program history.
“We are excited to welcome Melissa to our program, as her experience and success will be a great addition to our staff as we continue to build on our championship culture,” Kielsmeier said. “Melissa brings a wealth of knowledge in on-court coaching, recruiting and player development, along with all of the intangibles that you need in order to have an elite program. With her coaching background and history of success, Melissa will no doubt be a great fit for our program, and help us in the years to come as we continue to strive for excellence on and off the court.”
Prior to being promoted to head coach in 2018, Jackson served as Akron’s associate head coach for six years and assistant coach for four seasons. During this stretch, the Zips earned five postseason appearances, including a trip to the NCAA Tournament in 2014 after capturing the MAC Tournament title.
“I am incredibly excited to join the Cleveland State women’s basketball program, and so thankful to Coach Kielsmeier for this opportunity,” Jackson said. “Coach Kielsmeier is a proven winner both on and off the court, and I have an immense amount of respect for him and what he has accomplished throughout his career. During the process I was extremely impressed with everything that Cleveland State has to offer, and I can’t wait to get to work for this championship-level program and help impact student-athletes at CSU!”
During her time at Akron, Jackson helped lead the Zips to three 20-win campaigns and assisted in recruiting six MAC major award winners and 23 All-MAC honorees.
Prior to her time at Akron, Jackson spent four seasons as an assistant coach at Delaware, helping the Blue Hens to a CAA Regular Season championship, two WNIT appearances and an NCAA Tournament berth. Jackson was part of 20-win campaigns in three of her four seasons at Delaware, helping to recruit four CAA major award winners, six CAA All-League honorees and a top-20 pick in the 2007 WNBA Draft.
Jackson is a graduate of the University of Richmond, where she was a four-year student-athlete on the women’s basketball team.
SHELBY ZOECKLER
Zoeckler, who has been part of the Cleveland State women’s basketball staff since May of 2018, most recently spent the last two seasons as the Director of Basketball Operations. In her role, Zoeckler was responsible for the day-to-day operations of the team, travel arrangements, practice coordination, and program liaison among other duties.
“Our program is thrilled to be able to promote Shelby to an assistant coach role as she continues to take the next step in her collegiate career,” Kielsmeier said. “Shelby has been with this program for a long time, and she is a major part of the championship culture that we are building, and for us to be able to keep her at Cleveland State is tremendous for our program. You won’t find anyone else with more passion and love for the city of Cleveland and specifically, Cleveland State University. Shelby wears the Green & White with pride, and is a fantastic ambassador for not only our program, but the entire athletic department.”
Prior to serving as the Director of Operations, Zoeckler spent three seasons as the team’s Video Coordinator, overhauling the program’s recruiting presentations, creating recruiting content, graphics, and mailers, assisting with scouting reports, handling all video responsibilities, and more.
“I am beyond excited for the opportunity to serve Cleveland State women’s basketball in a new way and grateful for the trust of Coach Kielsmeier and the staff,” Zoeckler said. “Cleveland State is home and I want nothing more than to see this program and University continue to succeed. This program has some special young ladies in it, and I can’t wait to continue to grow professionally with a team that holds a special place in my heart.”
Zoeckler, who holds a health science undergraduate degree and an exercise science graduate degree from Cleveland State University, has been a large part of the Vikings’ success over the last few years, helping CSU capture the 2021 WBI championship and last season’s Horizon League Tournament title.
Since Zoeckler has been a part of the CSU staff, the Vikings have recorded three 20-win campaigns, advanced to the #HLWBB semifinals four straight years – including back-to-back appearances in the championship game – and own a 3.41 cumulative GPA as a team.
https://www.csuvikings.com/sports/w-baskbl/2023-24/releases/20230808mzsy1d
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