Lynchburg alum returns to coach

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Lynchburg athletic director Jack Toms announced Monday that former LC standout Abby Pyzik will return to the school as the head women’s basketball coach. She replaces Stephanie Tobey, who took an assistant job at Division I Fordham after compiling a 49-80 record in five seasons.

Pyzik, a 2004 graduate, has been an assistant at neighboring Washington & Lee the last two seasons. The Generals captured the conference title last year and made their first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance in program history. Pyzik also served as an assistant coach for Division I Davidson for three years, helping the Wildcats to a program-best 23-9 record in the 2006-07 campaign. She started her coaching career as a graduate assistant at Oakland City University, a Division II program in Indiana.

Pyzik, a two-time first-team All-Old Dominion Athletic Conference performer at Lynchburg, was a team captain for three seasons. The Hornets had three winning seasons in her four years, and she is fourth in school history with 1,122 career points. The former point guard ranks in the top five in eight different career statistical categories, including holding the program record for assists (373) and three-point shooting percentage (38.7%). She was a second-team all-state selection in 2003 and 2004 and was voted the Lynchburg College Senior Female Athlete of the Year in 2004. She graduated from LC with a bachelor's degree in athletic training and is on track to earn a master's in sports leadership from Virginia Commonwealth this winter.

“Words cannot describe the unbelievable honor it is to return home to one’s alma mater,” said Pyzik. “As an alum, I understand what it takes to be a successful student-athlete both on and off the court. I am excited to re-energize the atmosphere of enthusiasm and establish a winning tradition within the women’s basketball program. I would like to extend my thanks to President Garren, Dr. Toms, and the entire Lynchburg community for the incredible opportunity to lead this program to a new level. There is no doubt that with a tremendous amount of hard work and dedication Lynchburg will grow to be a top competitor in the ODAC year in and year out.”

“We are very happy to turn the women’s basketball program over to Abby,” said Toms. “She has great experience and has proven she is ready to run her own team. Abby knows what it takes to win at this level and is very familiar with the school and conference.”