Manhattan Christian College is pleased to announce the hiring of Mindy Eckert for the position of Head Women’s Basketball Coach effective immediately. Coach Eckert comes to Manhattan after spending the last two years at MacMurray College (NCAA D3) in Jacksonville, Illinois as the Assistant Women’s Basketball Coach. During her tenure at MacMurray, she was instrumental in recruiting for both the varsity and junior varsity programs and helped the program see an increase in wins from year one to year two. Prior to her time at MacMurray she spent three years as the Associate Head Women’s Basketball Coach at John Wood Community College where she was a major part in helping their program to a second-place finish in the Region 24 tournament in 2018.
“With not being able to step on campus yet due to COVID-19 I still get a sense of the family atmosphere in Manhattan. This is one big factor that drew me to MCC. The conversations that I have been able to have with a few MCC employees and students have been nothing but positive and uplifting and it just makes me that more excited to get on campus and meet even more people,” commented Coach Eckert
Coach Eckert will have a task in front of her as she takes over a program that has struggled at times over the last few seasons but is also only 3 years removed from a conference title and national tournament appearance.
“I am really looking forward to build this program the way I envision. Focusing on a positive and empowering family culture. I have been part of rebuilding a program while here at MacMurray College and we were making great strides in the right direction. So, having a little knowledge of what it takes helps me out. I am ready to hit the ground running, meet the returners, get some insight of what they are looking forward to this coming season and hopefully as a team we can get this program on track for some great things,” Coach Eckert said.
Coach Eckert begins her duties as Head Women’s Basketball Coach immediately and will be working to build the program through recruitment and the retention of the current women’s basketball roster. She plans to build her team and help them grow not only as basketball players, but in their faith as well.
“I am very excited and honored for this opportunity. I have a lot of people to thank; from my family, friends and mentors. Also, I would like to thank Jordan Strom and the rest of the search committee for allowing me this opportunity. Being a head coach has always been a dream of mine and I got into coaching because I wasn’t ready to step away from the game I love. This game is so much more than winning and losing and now I have a platform, as a coach, to have a positive impact on these young ladies- both on and off the court,” commented Coach Eckert
“We are excited to have Coach Eckert on board. She has the experience and charisma needed to be a head coach and we believe now is the time for that to happen and we couldn’t be more thrilled to have her with us in Manhattan,” stated Athletic Director, Jordan Strom.
