Georgia State proudly announces Marcilina Grayer as the Head coach of the women’s basketball program, Director of Athletics Charlie Cobb and President M. Brian Blake announced on Thursday afternoon.
“We are thrilled to welcome Coach Marcilina Grayer to lead our women’s basketball program,” Georgia State University President M. Brian Blake said. “I look forward to the energy and success that coach Grayer brings to the basketball program, and I am excited to see our community welcome her to the Panther family.”
Mammoth (MMTH) Sports Consulting assisted Georgia State Atheltics in the national search for this position.
Grayer brings a proven track record of success to Georgia State, having built winning programs despite the challenges of high roster turnover and constant recruiting demands. Most recently, she led the Salt Lake Community College Women’s Basketball team to significant success at the junior college level, highlighted by a recent Final Four appearance.
“We welcome Marcilina to Atlanta and into the Georgia State family,” Director of Athletics Charlie Cobb said. “She is an accomplished leader who brings new energy to our women’s basketball program. We like her style of play, and her familiarity of building successful teams through roster transition will undoubtedly help her in this transfer era of basketball.”
Georgia State Athletics will host a formal introduction of coach Grayer at the football spring game on Friday, April 17. Stay tuned for details to come.
“I am incredibly honored and excited to join Georgia State University as the head women’s basketball coach,” head coach Marcilina Grayer said. “This program has tremendous potential, and I look forward to building a culture rooted in toughness, discipline, and player development. Our goal is to compete at the highest level while developing strong, confident young women on and off the court.”
Grayer comes to Georgia State after serving as the head coach of the Salt Lake Community College Women’s Basketball program for six seasons.
A native of Utah, Grayer was named head coach of the Salt Lake C.C. in the spring of 2019, replacing longtime coach Betsy Specketer. She also served as the Assistant Athletic Director for the department, assisting with eligibility and other administrative functions, and served as a member of the NJCAA Board-of-Regents, representing Region 18 and the Scenic West Athletic Conference.
In her first two seasons as head coach, Grayer led Salt Lake to back-to-back winning seasons, including a 2019 Region 18 title and a berth in the 2019 NJCAA National Tournament.
A former SLCC player herself, Grayer brought a wealth of experience to the program with a set of accomplishments that landed her on the WBCA Thirty-Under-30 in 2018. The list recognizes the top-30 coaches in collegiate women’s basketball under the age of 30.
She helped lead the Bruins to an NJCAA Final Four appearance in the 2016-17 season, as Salt Lake earned both Scenic West and Region 18 titles. The Bruins also won the league in 2018 and 2019, repeating as Region 18 champions and claiming the Scenic West crowns.
Mostly working with the Bruin post players, Grayer played a huge role in helping SLCC land a First-Team All-Region 18 and Player of the Year pick in sophomore Cassidy Whitney. Because of her efforts, the 2015-16 SLCC program had a 31-3 overall record and 14-1 record in the SWAC, leading to a league championship and an NJCAA National Tournament at-large berth where the Bruins advanced to the Elite Eight.
Prior to coming back to SLCC, Grayer spent a full season as an assistant coach at Feather River College (FRC) and was in charge of the strength-and-conditioning program for the Golden Eagles. While at FRC, Grayer was also the head coach of the track-and-field program.
She helped lead the Golden Eagles women’s basketball squad to its best record in ten years under FRC coach Haley White. Prior to her stint at FRC, Grayer spent a year on the Copper Hills High School girls’ basketball staff and also coached for one year at Highland High School in the Salt Lake Valley.
Coach Grayer played collegiately at SLCC from 2008-10 where she helped the Bruins to a Region 18 runner-up finish and a No. 5 final ranking in the NJCAA Top-25 Polls in 2010. Grayer was an Academic All-Region 18 scholar-athlete in each of her two seasons as a Bruin.
She moved on to compete and study at Dixie State University in St. George, Utah, from 2010-12, where she helped guide the Red Storm to their first-ever NCAA West Region appearance in 2011.
Grayer played her high school basketball at Copper Hills High School in West Jordan and was a First-Team All-Region player in her junior and senior seasons. She earned Second-Team All-State honors as a senior with the Grizzlies, and was a basketball and track-and-field team captain at CHHS.
Coach Grayer earned her bachelor’s degree in Integrated Studies (Criminal Justice/Psychology) from Dixie State University and also obtained an associate’s degree from SLCC. She holds a Masters’ Degree in Coaching and Athletic Administration from Concordia University – Irvine.
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