| Mike Miller became the sixth active NCAA Division III women's basketball coach to reach the 600-win milestone. Messiah athletics file photo |
Messiah College head women's basketball coach Mike Miller picked up his 600th career victory when his Falcons defeated Eastern 76-62 on Tuesday night.
The Falcons (4-0) led from start to finish thanks to solid shooting from the three-point line (47 percent) and free-throw line (90 percent). Leah Springer and Kaitlyn Hoff scored 23 points apiece for Messiah.
With 600 wins, Miller only trails five active Division III coaches: Any Yosinoff of Emmanuel (789 wins through Tuesday), Dixie Jeffers of Capital (693), Connie Tilley of St. Norbert (673), Michael Durbin of St. Benedict (652) and Judy Blinstrub of Babson (607). Miller has posted a .720 winning percentage in his 31-plus seasons at Messiah and sits 15th on the all-time list for coaching victories by Division III women's basketball coaches.
Miller has led Messiah to the NCAA tournament 17 times, including 16 trips in the last 18 seasons. He has also led the Falcons to two appearances in the NCAA Division III national championship game, in 2002 and 2008. Messiah has appeared in the D3hoops.com Top 25 poll 173 times, sixth most among all programs.