UAA women’s basketball coach Ryan McCarthy hired by Division I program
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) - One of Alaska’s most successful basketball coaches of all time will be moving up the NCAA ranks.
The University of Alaska Anchorage announced on Monday afternoon that UAA women’s basketball coach Ryan McCarthy will be moving on to take the same position at Fresno State University, marking McCarthy’s first Division I coaching opportunity.
“It has been one of the greatest honors of my life to be the women’s basketball coach at UAA,” McCarthy said in a statement. “The ladies who built this have left a championship legacy and the most rewarding legacies are the graduates, professionals, spouses and mothers who have come through. Over the past 13 seasons we have had some exceptional ladies in our program who have impacted our university and the state of Alaska.
“Growing up in Alaska and watching the Seawolves created a dream that I was ultimately able to fulfill in being a part of this great university. I am so thankful for: all the administrators who I got to work for, assistant coaches who helped build our vision, support staff who worked alongside our mission, boosters who helped advance our program and every lady who wore a Seawolf uniform.”
McCarthy, who was just 29 when he accepted the UAA position, boasts the fourth-highest winning percentage among active NCAA Division II coaches.
Over 14 seasons as head coach, McCarthy has gone 323-80 overall (.801 winning percentage), with all but 27 of those games coming with the Seawolves. He is a six-time Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC) Coach of the Year and has led the Seawolves to eight wins over Division I programs during his tenure. He also guided the Seawolves to the 2016 NCAA national championship game.
McCarthy has proven to be one of the greatest talents to emerge from the GNAC, home to 10 teams spread across Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, British Columbia and Alaska.
A four-year starter at Northwest Nazarene University from 2002-2006, McCarthy ranks third all-time in 3-point field goals made (260), fifth in free throw percentage (88%) and second in minutes played.
After a brief stint in professional basketball, McCarthy returned to NNU to coach the women’s basketball team from 2007-12, including two years’ experience as NNU’s acting head coach (2010-11) and associate head coach (2011-12).
“Ryan McCarthy is a winner. His track record speaks for itself, but what really stood out was his vision, his energy, and his relentless style of play,” Fresno State Director of Athletics Garrett Klassy said in a statement. “His ‘Mayhem’ system is going to bring a level of excitement and intensity that the Red Wave will absolutely love. Ryan is hungry to compete at the highest level, and he’s ready to build something special here at Fresno State.”
UAA said it will begin a national search for its next head coach.
This is a developing story. Check back later for updates.
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