UM names Versyp next women’s hoop coach

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Citing a proven ability to run a program and a fervent commitment to academics, University of Maine Director of Athletics Suzanne Tyler introduced an Indiana native as the fifth head women’s basketball coach in Black Bear history on Monday.

Sharon Versyp, the 34-year-old top assistant coach at James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Va., participated in a media conference call on Monday afternoon following a whirlwind tour of Orono last week and a weekend of negotiations.

Tyler said that a series of meetings with players, university officials, and other constituent groups brought her to one conclusion.

“We evaluated each [candidate] as they went through their search process and how their characteristics came out,” Tyler said. “And Sharon was the winner in all of that. I think she was the best fit for us.”

Versyp said she had no intentions of letting the fortunes slip at a program that has qualified for six straight NCAA tournaments, and said her long-term goal is to improve on what she has been left.

“My visions are big,” Versyp said. “If we can get to the Sweet 16? That’s very, very possible. But you’ve got to have a process in place for the next three to five years … and you never know what could happen.”

Versyp replaces Joanne Palombo-McCallie, who compiled a 167-73 record in eight years at the helm of the Black Bears. Palombo resigned in March to become the head coach at Michigan State University.

Versyp has been at James Madison for three years, and before that she coached with her JMU mentor, Bud Childers, at the University of Louisville for one season.

She visited Orono for three days last week, as did North Carolina assistant Ann Hancock. Neither candidate was officially termed a finalist, but Tyler admitted that if one or the other impressed the search committee sufficiently, UMaine would have found its new coach.

That happened, as Tyler said she and Versyp have been talking since Friday, and expect to iron out details of a contract in the next couple of days.

Tyler said that UMaine and Versyp haven’t signed a contract yet and would not divulge details of a deal that has been agreed to in principle. Tyler did say that Versyp will likely sign a contract for three to five years.

Palombo-McCallie made $90,000 in her final year at UMaine.

Versyp inherits a program that has won 20 or more games 14 times over the past 16 years and qualified for the past six NCAA tournaments. The team has averaged 18.9 wins per season since its inception in 1975-76.

Still, Versyp will take over a team that lost to graduation the third-leading scorer in UMaine history (Jamie Cassidy) and one of the nation’s leaders in assists (Amy Vachon).

That just provides a fresh challenge, Versyp said.

“I think that the young ladies, when I spoke to them, want the challenge to show that they can still be contenders and we can mold this thing together as a team,” Versyp said. “And that we may shock a few people.”

Versyp is a native of Mishawka, Ind., and was a standout player for Purdue University. She was named the school’s top female athlete in 1988 and was a GTE Academic All-American. She earned a bachelor of arts degree in speech communication and theater education from Purdue, and minored in health and physical education.

Tyler said that the fact that Versyp had turned Lawrence North (Ind.) High School from an 0-18 team to a sectional runner-up in two years proved that the new Bear boss could handle the floor duties required of a coach.

But she said there was more to Versyp’s successful candidacy than that.

“I also liked that she had a broad-based recruiting background across the country and internationally,” Tyler said. “And also that she just hit it off and did a great job in her press conference and in all of her interviews.

“We put ’em through a pretty tough … three days and she never lost her energy [or] enthusiasm, didn’t skip a beat.”

UMaine men’s coach John Giannini, who served on the search committee, said the candidate pool that the committee assessed was talented, but it quickly became apparent that Versyp was a student of the game.

“Sharon stood out to me because of her basketball knowledge,” Giannini said. “I was really impressed with how well-prepared she was to be a head coach from the standpoint of her basketball philosophy.”

Taking control of her own college program will be demanding, Versyp figures.

“You’re gonna spend [24 hours a day, seven days a week] in the office. You’re gonna spend a lot of hours those first two years just cranking it out and working extremely hard, and everyone has to be a part of that,” Versyp said.

Tyler pointed out that Versyp had impressed the search committee with her knowledge of Maine high schoolers who had gone on to play collegiately in or out of Maine.

Versyp mentioned several Maine players – including future Black Bears Julie Veilleux and Heather Ernest and Presque Isle standout Brianna Blanchard – that she remembered from AAU tournaments.

Versyp said one of her top priorities will be to assemble a staff of assistants. While former UMaine assistants Jody Benner and Carla Debro have attended each candidate’s press conference, Versyp was noncommittal on their futures with the program.

“I think that you have to really do a very intense evaluation of the people that you want to bring in because you want one of the finest staffs in the country because of the tradition that it’s had,” Versyp said.

Still, she said she’d be willing to discuss opportunities.

“I have not spoken to anyone on the staff at this point, but I will be in [town] next week and I’ll always talk to anyone who’s interested in the job,” she said.

MAINE’S COACHING HISTORY Coach Record Years Eilene Fox 118-40 8 Peter Gavett 106-37 5 Trish Roberts 82-32 4 Joanne Palombo-McCallie 167-73 8