Cal State Fullerton Director of Athletics Jim Donovan has announced the hiring of Sammy Doucette to be the Titans new head women’s basketball coach.
“It’s clear that Sammy is a winner at every level – as a student-athlete, assistant coach, and the past seven years as the head coach of the Orange Coast College Women’s Basketball team,” said Donovan. “Furthermore Sammy’s environment at the Community College level is similar to ours today – in many cases a fair number of our student-athletes are entering the transfer portal annually. I believe Sammy’s proven leadership, style of play, and ability to recruit will be very positive for the team. I’m excited to have Sammy Doucette at the helm of our Titans women’s basketball program!”
Sammy Doucette, the 13th head coach in the Titans women’s basketball history, comes to Cal State Fullerton after spending the past seven seasons at the helm of Orange Coast College. Doucette becomes the eighth female coach in the Titans women’s basketball program history and the first since the 2012-13 season.
Doucette revitalized a downtrodden Orange Coast College program quickly from a two win team during her first season into a Southern California powerhouse. She guided the Pirates into the 3C2A playoffs for five straight seasons and led her team to three straight state championship games (2022-23, 2023-24, 2024-25) and won back-to-back championships during the 2022-23 and 2023-24 season.
“I’m so incredibly grateful for the opportunity to lead the Titan Women’s Basketball program,” said Sammy Doucette. “Thank you to President Rochon, Jim Donovan and the rest of the hiring committee for their trust and belief in me. I cannot wait to pour into our student-athletes and build a competitive and positive culture, on and off the court.”
“This place is very special to me. I’m from Orange County and have lived here my entire life. Every school I’ve attended or worked at has been in Orange County. When I played at Vanguard, I was very familiar with the Big West. I spent a lot of time at open gyms at UC Irvine, Long Beach State, and Cal State Fullerton. Some part of me has always wanted to be here. It means the world to me to be a coach in this conference at Cal State Fullerton and to stay where my roots are in Orange County.” said Doucette.
Over her tenure at OCC, Doucette has compiled a 131-42 record. She was named the Orange Empire Conference Coach of the Year twice (2023, 2024) as well as the Orange Empire Conference John Altobelli Women’s Sports Coach of the Year for back to back seasons (2024, 2025) an award that encompasses all women’s sports that the OEC sponsors. She led OCC to their second and third ever state titles in the history of the Pirates women’s basketball program. She set the program record for the most wins in a single season and best winning percentage (.970) during the 2022-23 season when the Pirates went 32-1.
Doucette’s accomplishments include two 3C2A State Championship Titles, three State Championship Finals appearances, five consecutive State Regional Playoff Appearances where she has a 14-3 postseason record, and three Orange Empire Conference Titles.
Throughout her leadership, her student athletes have won numerous conference and state honors. They include 22 All-Orange Empire Conference Honors, three All-Conference MVPs Meghan McIntyre (2022-23) Alyssa Dreesen (2023-24), Bridgette McIntyre (2024-25) along one with one OEC Offensive Player of the Year (Ashari Cassell) and one OEC Defensive Player of the Year (Alyssa Dreessen). They also include six All-State Southern California Region Selections and five All-State Tournament team selections along with one All-State Tournament MVP (Bridgette McIntyre).
“I am really looking forward to having Sammy as the next coach of Titans Women’s basketball and welcoming her to the Titans family,” said Associate Athletics Director Sara Perry.
Prior to coaching at Orange Coast College, Doucette was the head coach for one season at Costa Mesa HS where she guided the Mustangs to winning the Orange Coast League title and into the quarterfinals of the CIF playoffs. She spent one year as a graduate assistant at Concordia University Irvine (2016-17) and another year as an assistant coach/recruiting coordinator at Hope International University (2017-18). She was also a supervisor and head coach at the Mamba Youth Sports Academy in Newport Beach.
Doucette was a standout player for Vanguard University where she was a three time NAIA All-American and All-Golden State Athletic Conference selection. She scored 1,593 points over four seasons at Vanguard. She led the Lions to a 99-21 record during four years and made four NAIA National Tournament appearances including a spot in the Elite Eight in 2014 and won the Golden State Athletic Conference that same season. Before Vanguard, she was a standout player at Woodbridge HS where she won a Division 3A title with the Warriors in 2009.
Doucette earned her bachelor’s degree in business administration at Vanguard in 2016 before earning her master’s degree in coaching and athletic administration at Concordia University Irvine in 2018.
“I’d like to thank the Search Committee for their thorough work in the process of selecting Sammy Doucette. There were numerous qualified candidates and I appreciate the diligence and effort of the committee,” Donovan said.
https://fullertontitans.com/news/2026/5/4/sammy-doucette-named-head-womens-basketball-coach.aspx
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