Coquese Washington

Coquese Washington
Sport(s) Basketball
Current position
Title Head coach
Team Penn State
Record 164–125 (.567)
Biographical details
Born (1971-01-17) January 17, 1971
Flint, Michigan
Playing career
1989–1993 Notre Dame
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1999–2007 Notre Dame (asst.)
2007–present Penn State
Accomplishments and honors
Awards
BCA Female Coach of the Year (2011)
Big Ten Coach of the Year (2011)
Medal record
Women’s Basketball
Assistant Coach for  United States
World University Games
2013 Kazan, Russia Team Competition

Coquese Makebra Washington (born January 17, 1971)[1] is a former collegiate and professional basketball player who currently serves as the head coach of Penn State's women's basketball team, the Lady Lions. Washington holds a law degree and was the first president of the WNBA Players Association, holding that position from 1999 to 2001. She played her high school basketball at Flint Central High School and her collegiate basketball at the University of Notre Dame.

High school

Washington attended high school at Flint Central High School in Flint, Michigan. She was the starting point guard for all four years of her high school basketball career, the first player at Central to earn a starting position in all four years. Washington earned all-state honors in back to back years. In her senior year she scored 373 points to set a school scoring record for a single season, And went on to score a total of 1,123 points in her career. She led the team to their first ever Saginaw Valley Conference and district championships.[2][3][4] In addition to sports excellence, she also had musical talents, playing seven different musical instruments while at Central.[5]

University of Notre Dame

Washington played for Notre Dame's Fighting Irish women's basketball team from 1989 to 1993. Afterwards, she attended Notre Dame Law School from 1994 to 1997, earning her J.D.

Professional playing career

After completing her athletic eligibility with the Irish in 1993, she began a professional career by joining the American Basketball League 1996-98 (ABL). She began her pro career in 1997–98 as the starting point guard with the ABL's Portland Power.

Women's National Basketball Association Career

Coaching career

Notre Dame

Washington began her coaching career in 1999, when she returned to her alma mater, University of Notre Dame, and worked as an assistant coach under Head Coach Muffet McGraw. She was part of the coaching staff for the team that won the NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Championship in 2001, defeating Purdue.

In August 2005, Washington was promoted to an Associate Head Coach, which includes the responsibility of coordinating Notre Dame's recruiting efforts on promising young players.

Penn State

On April 23, 2007, she was named the fifth coach in Penn State women's basketball history, following Rene Portland's resignation.

Washington increased her number of Big Ten wins in each of her first six years, starting with 4 conference wins in 2007–2008 and growing to 14 and her second consecutive Big Ten regular season title in the 2012–2013 campaign. Washington's first post season appearance at Penn State was a first round loss in the 2010 WNIT Tournament. Since 2011, Washington has led her teams to three consecutive NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Championship appearances where her teams have advanced past the first round in every appearance. Her most successful season was the 2011–2012 season when Washington's Lady Lions advanced to the Sweet Sixteen before losing to perennial powerhouse UConn.

In 2013, Coquese Washington was named to the 18-member "Presidential Search and Screen Committee" at Penn State to help determine the University's next President.[6]

Awards and Honors

Head coaching record

Season Team Overall Conference Standing Postseason
Penn State (Big Ten Conference) (2007–present)
2007–08 Penn State 13–18 4–14 10th
2008–09 Penn State 11–18 6–12 T–7th
2009–10 Penn State 17–14 8–10 T–6th WNIT 1st Round
2010–11 Penn State 25–10 11–5 2nd NCAA 2nd Round
2011–12 Penn State 26–7 13–3 1st NCAA Sweet Sixteen
2012–13 Penn State 26–6 14–2 1st NCAA 2nd Round
2013–14 Penn State 24–8 13–3 T–1st NCAA Sweet Sixteen
2014–15 Penn State 6–24 3–15 T-13th
2015–16 Penn State 12–19 6–12 11th
2016–17 Penn State 4-1 0–0
Penn State: 164–125 (.567) 78–76 (.506)
Total: 164–125 (.567)

      National champion         Postseason invitational champion  
      Conference regular season champion         Conference regular season and conference tournament champion
      Division regular season champion       Division regular season and conference tournament champion
      Conference tournament champion

Personal

Washington lives in Port Matilda, Pa with her husband, Raynell Brown, and their son, Quenton Brown, who was born in 2005. She gave birth to a daughter, Rhaiyna Kamille Brown, on July 23, 2009.[2]

References

  1. ↑ "Women's Basketball Coaches Career". NCAA. Retrieved 22 Sep 2015.
  2. 1 2 "Coquese Washington Brown". http://www.fpl.info/. Retrieved 29 Oct 2015. External link in |website= (help)
  3. ↑ "Washington to be inducted into Greater Flint Area Sports Hall of Fame". http://news.psu.edu/. December 4, 2009. Retrieved 29 Oct 2015. External link in |website= (help)
  4. ↑ "Flint native Coquese Washington will stay with Penn State women's basketball program after interview with Michigan". http://www.mlive.com/. April 16, 2012. Retrieved 29 Oct 2015. External link in |website= (help)
  5. ↑ "Greater Flint Area Sports Hall Of Fame Inductees". http://gfashof.org/. Retrieved 29 Oct 2015. External link in |website= (help)
  6. ↑ http://www.pennlive.com/sports/index.ssf/2013/01/pick_and_roll_or_search_and_sc.html

External links

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