Saint Anselm college head women’s basketball coach Julie Plant announced that she will be stepping down immediately.
“We are thankful to Julie for her service to the College,” said Director of Athletics Daron Montgomery. “We know this was not an easy decision for her.”
Assistant coach Meg Morrissey ’14 will assist with head coaching duties on an interim basis. A national search will begin immediately for a replacement.
“I want to thank (Saint Anselm athletic director) Daron (Montgomery) and President (Steve) DiSalvo for the opportunity to coach at Saint Anselm College,” she said. “I have accomplished my goals, leaving the program in a better place than when I arrived and am looking forward to the next chapter in my coaching career. I will always cherish the relationships and memories that I’ve had the opportunity to develop. Most of all, the memories that I’ve had with my student-athletes through the years have been wonderful and they’ve made such a difference in my life.”
Plant was named the sixth women’s basketball coach in Saint Anselm College history on June 20, 2013 and had an instant impact. In her first season on the Hilltop in 2013-14, Plant guided the squad to a 15-12 record as they posted the highest number of wins in a season since 2004 and also earned a Northeast-10 Championship berth for the first time since 2011.
In 2015-16, Plant directed Saint Anselm to the program’s first NCAA Tournament berth in 17 seasons, as the eighth-seeded Hawks fell 62-54 at top-seeded Bentley in the quarterfinals of the NCAA Division II East Regional. The Hawks finished with an 18-10 overall record, including a 14-7 mark in the Northeast-10, for the program’s winningest season since 1998-99. The 18 wins and 14 conference victories were both twice as many as the previous season.
This past season Plant again guided the Hawks to new heights, posting a 19-10 overall record, 13-8 in Northeast-10 play, and fell just short of a bid to the NCAA Division II tournament. The team’s 19 wins were the most for the program since a 20-win campaign in 1998-99.
Plant posted a record of 61-49 in her four seasons as head coach on the Hilltop. The team posted back-to-back 18-plus win seasons the past two years for the first time since legendary coach Donna Guimont accomplished the feat in 1993 and 1994.
Prior to her arrival at Saint Anselm, Plant had spent eight seasons as the head coach at Division III Regis College, where she was the second winningest coach in program history, amassing an overall record of 128-87 (.595), including 80-45 (.640) in conference play. Plant guided the Pride to a perfect 36-0 regular season record in her two seasons in the NECC, and in 2013, helped the program earn its first NCAA Tournament bid since 1995.
Prior to her appointment at Regis, Plant spent one year as assistant coach of the Glendale Community College women’s basketball program in Glendale, Ariz., and served as a WNBA advance scout for the New York Liberty, while teaching physical education and coaching basketball and softball at Bourgade Catholic High school in Phoenix, Ariz.
Plant also served as an assistant coach at the University of Rhode Island (2002-03) and worked as a basketball and video operations intern with the New York Liberty, who advanced to the WNBA Finals during the 2002 summer season. Plant served dual roles as an assistant coach and head junior varsity coach at Elmira College in Elmira, N.Y., while earning her Master’s degree in Education from 2000-02.
Plant, a Gorham, Maine, native, is a graduate of the University of Southern Maine in Gorham, where she competed at the college level from 1996-2000. Her team was an NCAA Division III national finalist in 1998 and 2000. She was inducted into the New England Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006, commemorating her tremendous collegiate playing career. Plant earned her B.S. in Communication and also minored in education.
Photo Courtesy St. A’s Athletics
http://www.saintanselmhawks.com/sports/wbkb/2016-17/releases/20170421ji9xhh
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