The College of Coastal Georgia Athletics Department is pleased to announce the hiring of Head Women’s Basketball Coach Denise Hannah.
 
“We are so pleased to announce the selection of Coach Denise Hannah to lead the Mariners Women’s Basketball team.  Coach Hannah brings an infectious passion and enthusiasm for basketball to our team.  She is a strong leader who sets high standards and expectations and works tirelessly to help her players achieve those high standards.  She is a proven and effective recruiter who is very familiar with our recruiting footprint.  Finally, having coached at Thomas, she is familiar with our competitors in the Sun Conference and also our student-athletes which will allow her to get off to an exceptionally fast start here,” said Athletic Director Dr. William Carlton.

“It’s an honor to be named the next Head Women’s Basketball coach at the College of Coastal Georgia,” said Coach Denise Hannah, “I am thrilled to be joining an institution with such a rich history and a women’s basketball program with a known tradition of winning. I am extremely grateful to President Dr. Michelle Johnston, Athletic Director Dr. William Carlton, and the search committee for their belief in me to lead this program. I also want to thank my family for always encouraging and supporting me in my journey. I am so excited to lead the student-athletes of this team to be the best they can be.”

Coach Hannah comes to the College of Coastal Georgia from rival Sun Conference school Thomas University where she was the assistant women’s basketball coach for a season. At the same time, she served as the head coach of the Georgia Pursuit Women’s Basketball National D-League. 

Prior to TU, Hannah was the academic success coach and athletics advisor at Albany State University. From 2017 to 2019, Hannah was the assistant Coach at St. Thomas University, another Sun Conference institution, for two seasons. Her knowledge of the Sun Conference and how to encourage success academically and athletically will strengthen the Coastal Georgia Women’s Basketball team. 
 
Coach Hannah brings success from Professional, Collegiate, and High School level basketball. She was a high school coach for nine years while teaching for the Miami-Date County Public School. She also served as an Athletic Director and Academic Success Coordinator at the high school level.
 
Hannah was a four-year standout player at Oklahoma City University. She helped lead the 1988 team to become the NAIA National Champions. Following the standout season, she earned a spot on the NAIA National Championship All-Tournament Second Team. An NAIA All-America Third Team selection for two seasons, she also earned First Team All-SAC honors all four years. She was tabbed the Sooner Athletic Conference Freshman of the Year. She finished up her career as the fifth all-time leading scorer and holds the school record in scoring (1,755) and rebounding (1,255).

Hannah spent time playing overseas for The Republic of China. During her time on the team, she was the team captain and earned Defensive Player of the Year. She was the team rebounding leader (15 RPG) and ranked second on the team in scoring (17 PPG).
 
Hannah earned her Bachelor of Science in Criminal Law from Oklahoma City University. 

“Being so close to the beginning of the academic year the timing of our search was not ideal.  Our search committee had a difficult task in choosing our head coach because of the exceptionally strong pool of candidates.  Our committee needed to efficiently evaluate the applicant files to narrow the field to a small group of finalists.   Coach Hannah’s background and wealth of experience as a player and coach came through clearly during the initial screening and the interview process.  Coach Hannah becomes the women’s basketball program’s fourth head coach.  We are confident that she will sustain and improve on the team’s outstanding performances achieved by all our previous head coaches in the very competitive Sun Conference,” added Carlton.

Photo Courtesy Coastal Georgia Athletics

https://www.coastalgeorgiasports.com/article/3148

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