Liz Hickey has been named women's basketball head coach
at Averett, the school announced on Monday.
Hickey takes over the Averett women's program after serving as an
assistant coach for three seasons at the University of Rochester,
where she helped guide the Yellow Jackets to three consecutive NCAA
Tournament appearances — including a 2010 trip to the
Division III Final Four.
“I am greatly honored and very excited about becoming part of
the Averett University community,” Hickey said. “I am
grateful for the opportunity to coach competitive student-athletes
at a university that provides such a diverse and quality academic
experience. I look forward to building the women’s basketball
program and creating a successful tradition both on and off the
court."
Hickey becomes the eighth head coach in program history,
taking over for Larry Epperly, who served as the Cougars’
interim coach last season. Averett, which has had three consecutive
14-win seasons, finished the 2010-11 season with a 14-12 record
that was highlighted by a victory over eventual Final Four
participant Christopher Newport.
Prior to beginning her coaching career at Rochester in 2008, Hickey
was a three-time Division III All-American at Mary Washington. As a
three-year captain, Hickey helped lead Mary Washington two three
Capital Athletic Conference championships, four NCAA Tournament
berths, three Sweet 16 appearances and one Final Four. Mary
Washington had a combined 111-15 record during Hickey’s four
seasons.
“Liz is an incredible young coach who brings invaluable
experience to our program,” Averett Director of
Athletics Sam Ferguson said. “Her
playing career was unparalleled and she served on a staff at
Rochester that has a lot to be proud of, both on and off of the
court. Her background brings instant credibility as a coach, but we
are equally excited about her ability to be a mentor for our
student-athletes. Our search committee made a slam dunk in finding
Liz.”
A native of Virginia Beach, Hickey was a dominating post player who
finished her career as the NCAA Division III career leader in
blocked shots with 510 in 126 games. She was selected to the WBCA
First Team All-American as a senior. In addition, Hickey was a
D3hoops.com Second Team All-American as a senior and Third Team
All-American as a junior and as a
sophomore. She also earned three consecutive First Team
All-Conference honors from the Capital Athletic Conference and was
the CAC Player of the Year as a junior and senior. She was a First
Team All-State selection as a junior and senior and a Second Team
All-State honoree as a sophomore. Hickey is also the only
student-athlete in any sport at Mary Washington to have her jersey
number retired.
Hickey also achieved success in the classroom. She holds a
bachelor's degree in mathematics from Mary Washington, where she
was a member of the Alpha Phi Sigma Honor Society, the National
Society of Collegiate Scholars and was chosen as Mary
Washington’s Academic Athlete of the Year. Hickey is
currently completing her master's degree in teaching and curriculum
from Rochester.