New UM basketball coach making transition> Sharon Versyp coping with mother’s battle against leukemia

ORONO – Sharon Versyp is proud to say she has always enjoyed a special relationship with her mother Kathleen.

The 34-year-old Versyp, the youngest of three children, has been able to share anything with her mom, whose loving support has been instrumental in her success as a student-athlete and as a basketball coach.

Last week, Versyp and her mother had what may be the last of their heart-felt talks after Versyp was named the head women’s basketball coach at the University of Maine. The timing of the announcement was bittersweet for Sharon Versyp, whose mother was diagnosed last June with leukemia and is near death.

“There’s a purpose behind [the timing],” said Versyp, who met with the media Monday on campus, where she’s busy preparing to make a permanent move, probably sometime in June. “My mom was able to share in that before she got to the state where she’s not understanding very much, but she was able to know that I got this job and she was very proud of me.”

Shortly after learning her daughter had taken the position, Kathleen Versyp’s health took a turn for the worse.

“She hugged me and I kind of just said, `when it’s your time, you need to go tell dad about it,’ ” said Versyp, whose father died nine years ago.

“My parents have made a major impact in my life and this is overwhelming what I’m going through, but I think I have a good perspective of it all,” she said.

Versyp is at peace knowing her mom was able to share in her joy about taking the UMaine job. And though it’s difficult, she is busy this week trying to begin the transition to her new position.

The former James Madison assistant has not signed a contract, but UMaine athletics director Suzanne Tyler said Versyp is expected to accept a deal worth approximately $75,000 a year for three to five years. That would make her the third-highest paid coach at UMaine behind men’s hockey coach Shawn Walsh ($94,335) and football coach Jack Cosgrove ($90,000).

Versyp said her priorities are to meet people at UMaine and in the community, to touch base with Maine high school coaches and recruits, and to hire three assistant coaches.

“I talked to two of the young ladies [on the team] today and I’m so excited,” Versyp said. “I just want to start tomorrow, to get them all together and start this thing for the next era.”

Versyp said she has whittled a list of potential assistants to eight and has already sent out a handful of letters to incoming freshmen, high school coaches and recruits.

Looking ahead, Versyp admits the substantial graduation losses, including point guard Amy Vachon and center Jamie Cassidy, along with the departure of junior forward Martina Tinklova because of chronic knee injuries, are cause for concern. Even so, she must further evaluate the returning players to have a good understanding of the team’s strengths and weaknesses.

“If kids have a lot of heart and desire, if they’re on the same page and you have great chemistry, you can come a long way,” she said.

Versyp, who realizes the Black Bears are short on experience at point guard, hopes to implement a system that gives UMaine versatility. She favors a mix of full-court and half-court defenses with trapping and looks to install a three-guard motion offense.

“I’m not a one-style type of coach,” Versyp said. “With my offensive philosophy, all three guards are going to have to handle the ball.”

UMaine has at least two scholarships available, as the departure of Joanne Palombo-McCallie in March effectively made it impossible to continue recruiting. Versyp said finding the right kind of student-athletes at this point is difficult, but not impossible.

“My philosophy with recruiting is that you need to find quality student-athletes,” Versyp said. “I think you need to know a lot about them. You need to do a lot of research.”

Versyp eventually hopes to take advantage of extensive recruiting contacts in the New York-New Jersey-Philadelphia area and in the Midwest. She said she won’t rule out junior college players, but would prefer signing players out of high school.