WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
MEN'S SPORTS
WOMEN'S SPORTS
GBR.COM EXTRAS
MULTIMEDIA
MEMBERSHIP
ABOUT MIDDLE
RAIDER SPIRIT
ATHLETICS
Sun Belt Conference NCAA Bowl Championship Series Sirius Satellite Radio
gbr login   Username:   Password:     Signup free!
August 20, 2007
White Hired for Women's Hoops Staff
15-year collegiate coaching veteran returns to Middle Tennessee for second time
Jo Jo Freeman

Middle Tennessee women's basketball coach Rick Insell announced the hiring of longtime collegiate assistant coach and former Blue Raider assistant Eric White on Monday, completing Insell's coaching staff for the upcoming season. (MT) Send this photo to your mobile phone!


MURFREESBORO, Tenn. - Middle Tennessee women's basketball coach Rick Insell announced the hiring of longtime collegiate assistant coach and former Blue Raider assistant Eric White on Monday, completing Insell's coaching staff for the upcoming season.

White spent last season as an assistant coach at East Tennessee, where the Lady Bucs compiled a 20-12 overall record and a 14-4 mark in the Atlantic Sun Conference. ETSU lost in the finals of the A-Sun Tournament to Belmont before falling in the first round of the WNIT at Western Carolina. It was just the second postseason appearance in school history for the Lady Bucs.

"I am very excited to come back to Murfreesboro and Middle Tennessee and especially at this time when Coach Insell has the program headed in a great direction," White said. "My experience here the first time around was tremendous and to get the opportunity to return and be a part of a national program makes this a special job for me. I'm ready to hit the ground running and make Coach Insell's goal of reaching the Final Four a reality."

Before heading to East Tennessee, White spent three years as an assistant at Austin Peay, helping the Lady Govs to the 2004 Ohio Valley Conference regular season and tournament titles.

APSU posted a 23-8 overall record and a 14-2 OVC mark during its championship season. The Lady Govs were 46-40 overall and 30-22 in OVC play during White's three seasons in Clarksville. Gerlonda Hardin and Ashley Haynes were both First Team All-OVC selections during the 2004 campaign. Hardin was voted the OVC Tournament MVP and also the OVC Player of the Year and Female Athlete of the Year as well.

Haynes was a Second Team selection in 2005 and a First Team honoree in 2006, while Saundra Hale was named to the OVC All-Newcomer Team in 2006. Hardin, Haynes and Kera Bergeron were all voted to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District team during White's tenure at Austin Peay as well.

White's connection to Insell came during the 2002-03 academic year. White served as an assistant at Shelbyville Central High School and was a part of the Lady Eaglettes state championship team. The squad posted a 37-1 mark for the season and boasted four NCAA Division I signees, including Ashleigh Newman (Maryland), Alex Fuller (Tennessee), Kim Dye (Florida) and Whitney Tate (East Tennessee).

"We found someone with experience and umlimited contacts to add to our staff in Eric," Insell said. "But the biggest thing is the work ethic because that's what we're all about at MIddle Tennessee, working hard everyday to recruit the best players in the country."

White previously served at Middle Tennessee under then head coach Stephany Smith for two seasons during Middle Tennessee's first two years in the Sun Belt Conference. The Blue Raiders posted a 33-26 overall record and a 16-14 SBC mark during the 2000-01 and 2001-02 campaigns, including a first round loss in the WNIT at Indiana in 2001.

The Boaz, Ala., native was an assistant to Gary Van Atta at UT Martin from 1997-00, helping the Lady Skyhawks to an OVC co-championship in 1999 as well as a loss in the OVC Tournament finals in 1998, coincidentally to Middle Tennessee. During his four seasons, UTM posted a 60-54 overall record and a 45-27 mark in the OVC.

Zabrina Harris and Bethany Melton were both voted to the OVC All-Freshman team in 1997, while Tessa Fields earned First Team honors and Nichole Lockridge garnered Third Team All-OVC accolades in 1998. Harris and Fields were both First Team honorees and Tracy Webb earned All-Freshman accolades in 1999 and Harris again was voted to the First Team in 2000.

White received a bachelor's in Social Science from the University of Montevallo outside Birmingham in 1996 and earned a second bachelor's degree in Health and Human Performance from UT Martin in 2000.

White's coaching career began while at Montevallo, where he was a student assistant for four years from 1993-96. He also served for one semester as an assistant at East Central Community College in Decatur, Miss., before joining Van Atta's staff at UT Martin.


Share/Save/Bookmark Print this article
Share on Facebook

Signup for email newsletters!




MTAlumni.com
  SEARCH
 · Home
 · Calendar
 · Facilities
 · Tickets
 · MT Home
 · Contact Us
Blue Raider Football Gameday
Click for ticket info
BlueRaidersGear.com
Upcoming Media Appearances

Doubletree Hotel, Murfreesboro Clarion Hotels Roscoe Brown, Inc. Tailgating at Toot's
 
©1998-2008 BRAA and Middle Tennessee Athletic Communications
MTSU Box 20 · Murfreesboro, TN 37132
Phone 615.898.2450