Head Coach Ryun Williams announced on Tuesday the additions of Brooke Atkinson, Rebecca Alvidrez and Ashley Wiens to help bolster the Rams’ sideline beginning next season.
Atkinson and Alvidrez were named assistant coaches during the month of June, while Weins took over as video coordinator on July 1. Atkinson and Alvidrez will work primarily with the Rams’ perimeter players, and will also split recruiting duties with assistant coach Tim Moser.
Brooke Atkinson
Atkinson joins the Rams from South Dakota, where she worked under Williams for one season before he was hired at CSU. In her three seasons with the Coyotes, she helped guide them to three postseason berths, including the team’s first ever NCAA DI tournament appearance following a Summit League tournament championship in 2014.
Prior to her time spent up north, Atkinson was an assistant coach from 2003-10 at New Mexico State. While there she helped lead the Aggies to three WAC championship games, and the team’s first postseason appearance in 16 years in 2010. She was recognized for her efforts when she was promoted to second assistant in 2005, and she later won the school’s Outstanding Coach Award in 2008.
A Colorado native, Atkinson attended Westminster High School before beginning her collegiate playing career at Western Nebraska Community College. She then moved on to Wichita State, where she played for two season with the Shockers. Atkinson graduated from Wichita State in 2003 with a bachelor’s degree in elementary education. She later earned her master’s from New Mexico State in educational curriculum in 2008.
Rebecca Alvidrez
Alvidrez comes to Colorado State from Nebraska Omaha, where she spent two years as an assistant with the Mavericks. While there she played an integral role in recruiting, with strong ties to Europe and the West Coast. Alvidrez had played one season of professional basketball in Sweden with Brahe Basket in 2003-04.
Following a successful playing career as the point guard at Otero Junior College and Montana State, Alvidrez began her coaching career in 2002 at Otero under then head coach Moser. She spent four years with the Rattlers’ men’s and women’s teams before moving on to the University of Alaska Anchorage in 2006, where she helped lead the women’s squad to unprecedented heights at the NCAA Division II level.
An Albuquerque, N.M., native, Alvidrez was a two-time all-Big Sky selection and was named Newcomer of the Year at Montana State. Before then at Otero, she led her team to two conference titles and was awarded two junior-college All-American honors.
Ashley Wiens
A former walk-on at Colorado State in 2011-12, Wiens remained on the Rams’ staff as a student manager following the appointment of Head Coach Williams in 2012. A critical component of the squad for games both home and away, Wiens assisted the staff in nearly all areas, including gameday and practice operations. She will now serve as the Rams’ video coordinator and will play a vital role as assistant director of operations, while helping with camps and social media.
A native of Grand Junction, Colo., Wiens played in nine games for CSU during her junior season, averaging 1.1 points per contest. She graduated this past December with a bachelor’s degree in food and nutritional sciences.
The changes come with the departure of assistant coach Mandy Koupal and video coordinator Megan Mardesen. Assistant coach Chad Lavin is still on the Rams’ staff, but will now serve as a the director of women’s basketball administration, and he will not recruit, but he remains in charge of gameday prep, opponent scouting and practice evaluation.
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