College Hoops Community Lauds Penn State’s Hire Of Carolyn Kieger To Coach Lady Lions
Penn State women’s basketball announced former Marquette head coach Carolyn Kieger will replace Coquese Washington at the helm of the program on Tuesday afternoon. She’ll be the sixth head coach in program history.
Kieger posted a 99-64 record during her tenure with Marquette. Her teams qualified for the NCAA tournament and won at least 24 games in each of the past three seasons. The Golden Eagles won Big East regular season titles in each of the past two years and the conference tournament title in the 2016-2017 season.
The Penn State community was quick to welcome Kieger to Happy Valley.
The Beaver Stadium welcome to new @PennStateWBB Coach, Carolyn Kieger! #WeAre (
— πΎππ§ππ¨ ππ§π€π¨π¨π (@Chris_Grosse) April 4, 2019@JGrecc7) pic.twitter.com/Ofq5SoWjfe
.@PennStateWBB @ckieger is headed to Happy Valley! Cant wait to start introducing you to your new family! #LadyLions get ready! #WeAre #OneTeamβ β
— Sandy Barbour (@TheBarbour_Shop) April 4, 2019pic.twitter.com/QMVQsNZG8K
Kieger arrived in Happy Valley Thursday for her first tour of Penn State.
— Penn State Women's Basketball (@PennStateWBB) April 4, 2019
Happy Valley pic.twitter.com/VzxdNDeVqM
The college basketball community was quick to praise Kieger as a quality addition to the program.
“Penn State and Sandy Barbour made the most amazing hire,” University of Miami women’s basketball coach Kate Meier said. “In Carolyn Kieger, they found a brilliant mind, a fiercely competitive spirit, and a woman of impeccable integrity.”
Several commentators emphasized that Kieger’s basketball philosophy creates a style of play that served Penn State well in the past, and may take the Lady Lions to a higher competitive level.
“She will hold her players accountable to an up-tempo pace that will stir up the championship pedigree at Penn State,” WNBA analyst Debbie Antonelli said.
“Some of the best championship Lady Lion teams have played with a fast, high-scoring brand of basketball,” Lisa Byington, a reporter for the Big Ten Network, ESPN and FS1, said. “That excitement will be back in State College.”
Kieger’s longtime Big East counterpart Doug Bruno, head coach of DePaul women’s basketball, praised his rival following her departure.
“The DePaul-Marquette rivalry has always been one of the best rivalries in college basketball, and Carolyn helped drive that rivalry to another level,” said Bruno, who has led Depaul since 1988. “The Big East will surely miss Carolyn Kieger.β
Before taking the reins at Marquette in 2014, Kieger was a four-year starter for the Golden Eagles and still holds the program’s record for the most career assists.
The Marquette faithful and the school’s administrators lamented the departure of one of the program’s all-time greats.
“She has been a tremendous ambassador for the Marquette family since her time as a student-athlete here,” Marquette Athletic Director Bill Scholl said. “We wish her all the best as she takes the next step in her career.”
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