Despite an interest from Indiana University, FGCU women’s basketball head coach Karl Smesko announced Tuesday his continued commitment to the university and the women’s basketball program. Smesko, who has been with the Eagles since 2001 and is entering the fifth year of a seven-year contract, will remain at FGCU and lead the Eagles during the 2014-15 season and beyond.
“I am happy to be at FGCU,” explained Smesko of his decision. “Ken [Kavanagh, Director of Athletics] and President Bradshaw were great during this process. I really like and respect everyone I have met at Indiana University; however, the timing just wasn’t right to make this move.”
Indiana’s interest in Smesko was sparked last week when head coach Curt Miller resigned abruptly after two years at the helm of the Hoosier program. Miller cited health and family reasons as the crux of his late decision. Smesko was also a finalist in the search that hired Miller in 2012.
“We are extremely pleased that Karl has decided to remain an Eagle and will continue to serve as such a tremendous teacher and ambassador for FGCU,” said Kavanagh Tuesday morning. “He has established a program from scratch that has rightly earned its place amongst the finest in the nation based on our ladies’ collective accomplishments on and off the floor. In turn, we look forward to many more celebratory occasions well into the future under Coach Smesko and his outstanding staff.”
The offensive guru, who earned his fourth-consecutive Atlantic Sun Coach of the Year award after a successful 2013-14 campaign, led the program to its 300th win in his 12th season. Under his direction, the team completed the season with a record of 26-8, including a 17-1 mark in conference action. The Eagles won their fourth-consecutive regular season championship and went undefeated in the A-Sun Conference tournament to win their second Tournament Championship in three seasons. With the A-Sun Championship, the Green and Blue earned their second NCAA Tournament appearance in three years of eligibility, where they fell to eventual Sweet 16 team and no. 5 seed Oklahoma State 61-60 in overtime at the West Lafayette, Ind. Regional. The 2013-14 season marked the 10th-consecutive season in which a Smesko coached team won at least 20 games.
Smesko’s team also stands as one of the most prolific 3-point shooting programs in NCAA history with several records set. The Eagles currently hold the NCAA single-game record with 22 successful shots from long range and rank second in the record books with 11.7 made shots per game during the 2012-13 season and 350 total shots made from the perimeter during the 2010-11 season.
In addition to the on court success last season, the team was again ranked among the nation’s top-25 teams academically. The group finished the 2013-14 academic year with a cumulative grade point average of 3.521 to rank 11th in the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association Honor Roll.
Smesko’s career coaching record, which includes the NAIA Division II National Title during his one year at Walsh (Ohio), two seasons at IPFW and his 12 seasons at FGCU, stands at 375-91 (.804). He holds an astounding record of 314-64 (.830) in 12 seasons at FGCU with a mark of 182-43 (.808) in Division I play. In six seasons in the Atlantic Sun, Smesko-led teams have compiled a record of 117-13 (.900) in conference games, which includes a record 44-game win streak in regular-season conference play. Smesko also owns a solid 11-4 record (.733) in national tournament games with an 8-1 mark in Atlantic Sun postseason games.
The five-time Atlantic Sun Coach of the Year ranks among an elite list of just four active Division I coaches with a career win percentage of .800 or higher. Smesko joins Connecticut’s Geno Auriemma, Baylor’s Kim Mulkey and Stanford’s Tara VanDerveer in the esteemed group.
Smesko has coached 13 All-Conference selections, including two-time Atlantic Sun Player of the Year Sarah Hansen. Hansen was also named a three-time Atlantic Sun Scholar Athlete of the Year and recently graduated as the FGCU women’s basketball program’s most decorated athlete, including being named to the FGCU Hall of Fame.
The Eagles return the entire 2013-14 roster with the exception of Hansen for the 2014-15 slate. The team also added Vanderbilt transfer Kady Schrann (York, Pa./York Catholic High School) and incoming freshman Tayler Goodall (Columbus, Ind./Columbus North High School). Although Schrann will sit out due to NCAA transfer regulations, Goodall will make her Green and Blue debut this season. The Eagles retain two double-figure scorers in First-Team All Atlantic Sun performer Whitney Knight (Winston-Salem, N.C./R.J. Reynolds High School) and Stephanie Haas (Avon Lake, Ohio/Magnificat High School) as well as rising senior captain and Atlantic Sun Championship MVP Jenna Cobb (New Holland, Ohio/Miami Trace High School/Butler).
“I really like the team we have this year,” added Smesko. “I am eager for school to get started.”
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