Pemper accepts Navy job Coach posted 235 victories at Bowdoin

Stefanie Pemper helped transform Bowdoin College into one of the premier Division III women’s basketball programs in the country during the last 10 seasons.

Now, she is taking her coaching talents from Brunswick to the Division I level.

The United States Naval Academy on Wednesday announced it has hired Pemper as its women’s basketball coach.

“Stefanie is a perfect fit for the Academy,” Navy athletic director Chet Gladchuk said in a press release. “She is personable, accomplished, a visionary and inspiring as a coach and is a proven leader.”

Pemper replaces Tom Marryott, who announced in March he would not return as the head coach after a five-year stint. Marryott’s teams put together a 57-89 overall record, including a 7-23 mark last season as a member of the Patriot League.

Pemper, a native of Huntington Beach, Calif., directed the Polar Bears to a 235-48 (.830) record in 10 seasons, including nine NCAA Division III Tournament appearances. Bowdoin on five occasions reached the “Elite Eight” and played in the national title game in 2004.

Pemper’s .830 winning percentage ranks fourth all-time in Division III.

“What an amazing 10 years it has been,” Pemper said in a prepared statement. “I owe Bowdoin so much for giving me the opportunity to be a head coach, and I will miss this place tremendously.”

From 2001-2007, Bowdoin posted a 164-14 record (.921) with six straight New England Small College Athletic Conference championships and six consecutive NCAA “Elite Eight” appearances.

Pemper’s 2004 squad went 30-1 and she was named the WBCA Division III Coach of the Year. The Polar Bears also put together a 76-game home winning streak from 2001-2007, which ranks as the fourth longest such streak in Division III history.

Last season, the Polar Bears posted a 19-9 record during a transition season and still reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

Pemper, a 1992 graduate of Idaho State, began her coaching career as a graduate assistant at Alaska-Anchorage in 1993, then served one season at Idaho State and did a two-year stint at Harvard.

Bowdoin said a national search to find Pemper’s replacement has already begun.

UMFK announces sports awards

Heather Hickey and Emlyn Jacoby have been named the top athletes of the year at the University of Maine-Fort Kent.

Hickey, a senior from Fort Kent, was the UMFK Female Athlete of the Year. She excelled in Alpine and Nordic skiing for the Bengals, earning several top-10 finishes.

Jacoby, a senior from Johannesburg, South Africa, was named the UMFK Male Athlete of the Year. He captained the Bengals’ most successful soccer team in school history, helping them reach the round of 16 in the national tournament.

Jacoby led the NAIA in assists per game.

The Terry Drown Award for Scholastic Achievement went to Megan Watson, a women’s soccer player from Hermon, and men’s basketball player Gediminas Sumyla of Vilnius, Lithuania. Both were key contributors to their teams and had the highest grade point average.

Scott Hackett solid for Stonehill

Former Bangor High School standout Scott Hackett is having a solid spring during his first season at Stonehill College in North Easton, Mass.

The sophomore, who transferred to Stonehill this season after spending last year at the University of Maine, has been swinging a hot bat of late.

The utility player, who has seen considerable duty as the designated hitter, is batting a team-leading .357 in 14 games, including six starts. Hackett is 10-for-28 with a home run and nine RBIs.

He has gone 7-for-19 (.368) with six RBIs and six runs scored in his last five games for the 23-20 Skyhawks of the Division II Northeast-10 Conference.