| LaVonda Wagner |
 |
|
 | Hometown:
Bristol, Va.
|
| Alma Mater:
Mars Hill College, '86
|
|
|
|
|
Simply put, in three seasons at Oregon State, LaVonda Wagner has made her mark on the women's basketball program.
Now entering her fourth season as head coach of the Beavers, Wagner has molded Oregon State into a program that expects success on the court and off it. Her student-athletes work hard on the court to be successful as a team. They work hard off it to be valuable citizens in the Corvallis community and to succeed in the classroom.
In 2007-08, Wagner's leadership of the Oregon State program produced a host of successes. Oregon State saw its players recognized on the Pac-10 level, including a Player of the Week award after an effort that nearly set a single-game conference record, an All-Conference honoree and three Beavers recognized for their work in the classroom with All-Academic Honorable Mention honors.
Wagner's players competed hard in 2007-08, challenging the likes of No. 6 Stanford and No. 9 California, and taking each down to the wire. They did so through teamwork and dedication, points of pride the head coach stresses and expects. They are necessary tools when building a family atmosphere as Wagner has done with the Beavers.
Oregon State's success in 2007-08 continued into the postseason, where OSU defeated Arizona in the first round of the Pac-10 Tournament. The Beavers held the Wildcats to just 31 points, the lowest ever against a Pac-10 team and the third-lowest total regardless of opponent during Wagner's tenure.
Wagner began the process of rebuilding Beaver basketball when she was hired as the program's fourth head coach on April 15, 2005. Since that date, Wagner and the Beavers have made upward progress to becoming a dangerous Pac-10 club. And Wagner has planned this from day one.
Wagner wants her players to take ownership in the program, just as she does. By instilling work ethic, her players, even from day one as freshmen, play with a passion for the game and an understanding of what it takes to compete and be successful at the collegiate level. They bond as a team and develop trust and respect for one another and the program.
Wagner has recruited players who not only have established themselves on the court, but in the classroom as well. On the court, Wagner's first three recruiting classes have helped replenish the Oregon State program. She and her staff have an eye for talent and have utilized that to the tune of three prominent and decorated classes that will be at the forefront of Oregon State's reconnaissance.
In 2008-09, Wagner will have at her disposal one of the most balanced Oregon State squads in recent history. Three seniors in Fox-Griffin, Brittney Davis and Tiffany Ducker will lead the club with extensive Pac-10 experience. Wagner will also have youth, evidenced by top freshmen Brittany Kennedy and Kirsten Tilleman. In between will be a core group of Oregon State players who have benefited from joining the Beavers and who have been a key part of the blueprint to change OSU basketball.
Off the court, Wagner has targeted the type of player who fits the Oregon State mold; one who excels in the classroom, in the community and who is interested in preparing themselves for post-college success. During her first season in Corvallis, Wagner helped mentor Mandy Close, who earned Pac-10 All-Academic First-Team honors. And during the 2006-07 season, Wagner watched as Ashley Allen, in her first season on the court with the Beavers, earned Pac-10 All-Academic honorable mention honors.
While she has been busy rebuilding the Oregon State program, Wagner has also begun to take a leadership role on a national scale. Starting in 2007, she became a member of the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) Executive Team. She was named to the WBCA's Board of Directors in 2006. Wagner has also helped influence future coaches by speaking at the "So You Want To Be A Coach" seminar at the WBCA National Convention.
In 2006-07, Wagner and the Beavers fought through adversity to post nine victories and play to within the last minute in a number of contests. Oregon State made strides as a team, with many of the team's younger players gaining valuable experience and leadership opportunities.
Wagner takes solace in the fact that the 2006-07 season served to develop a number of the team's players.
Casey Nash, in her final but most successful and dynamic season, led the Pac-10 and finished 14th nationally averaging 20 points per game. And Mercedes Fox-Griffin, in just her sophomore season, placed first in the Pac-10 and eighth nationally with 6.4 assists per game. She, in fact, was one of 45 players invited to try out for USA Basketball's Under 21 National Team.
The Beavers' also saw freshmen excel, with Wagner and her coaching staff mentoring a class that produced a Pac-10 All-Freshman selection in 2006-07.
That, of course, is just another sign of the evolution of Oregon State basketball under Wagner. With Pac-10 prominence comes national prominence and a whole host of opportunities to succeed and gain recognition.
Wagner made an immediate impact after taking ownership of the Oregon State program. She guided the Beavers to a 16-15 overall record and a postseason Women's National Invitation Tournament berth in 2005-06 during her inaugural season as a head coach.
The Beavers posted a 10-game improvement overall - one of just eight programs in the nation to show at least a 10-game improvement from the previous season - and finished with a 7-11 Pacific-10 Conference record after garnering just one conference victory the previous year.
Wagner was named Oregon State's Women's Sport Coach of the Year by the Corvallis Gazette-Times newspaper and The Oregonian newspaper listed her as one of its Top 25 most influential people in sports for the state.
Wagner came to Oregon State with a winning pedigree. Prior to her appointment as head coach, she served on three successful coaching staffs as an assistant. She accumulated 17 years of experience at Duke, Illinois and East Tennessee State.
She posted 300 wins as an assistant and was involved in nine consecutive postseason appearances. Accustomed to success, Wagner has coached in the NCAA Final Four, two NCAA Elite Eight games, and two NCAA Sweet 16 appearances.
A native of Bristol, Va., Wagner spent three seasons (2002-05) as an assistant coach at Duke University, where she was heavily involved in recruiting, scouting and working with the Blue Devils' post players.
In her time at Duke, Wagner helped the Blue Devils bring in three top five national recruiting classes, including the top recruiting class in 2003 and the second-best recruiting class in 2005. Duke advanced to the NCAA Elite Eight in each of Wagner's three seasons and earned a trip to the 2003 NCAA Final Four.
Prior to joining Duke's staff, Wagner spent eight seasons at the University of Illinois (1994-02), where she played a large role in the rise of Illini basketball. She was instrumental in garnering one of the top five recruiting classes in 2000, while she attracted many of the top players from Illinois and recruited on a national scale.
While working at Illinois and Duke, Wagner was mentored by two of the most respected and successful coaches in the basketball ranks - Theresa Grentz (formerly of Illinois) and Gail Goestenkors (formerly of Duke).
Grentz, the former head coach at Illinois, has more than 600 wins in her career and is a member of the Women's Basketball Coaches Hall of Fame, while Goestenkors, now the head coach at Texas, has nearly 400 career victories.
Wagner began her stint at Illinois in 1994 as an assistant coach and four years later she was promoted to recruiting coordinator. After the completion of the 1998-99 season, Wagner was promoted once again to associate head coach where she spent four seasons (1998-02).
Prior to arriving at Illinois, Wagner spent six seasons at East Tennessee State (1988-94) where she served as the top assistant coach and recruiting coordinator. Before joining the basketball ranks, Wagner coached volleyball at ETSU from 1986-88.
A successful student-athlete as well, Wagner earned National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) All-America honors in basketball and volleyball in 1986 at Mars Hill College in North Carolina. On Oct. 23, 1998, Wagner was inducted into the Mars Hill Hall of Fame.
Wagner earned a bachelor's degree in physical education with a minor in recreation from Mars Hill in 1986 and a master's degree in education with an emphasis in athletic administration from East Tennessee State in 1988.
Wagner understands how important it is for her players and staff to make themselves available to the Corvallis community. She believes involvement in the community is an important part of the growth of Oregon State basketball and instills that same desire of "giving back" to her student-athletes.
An acclaimed public speaker, Wagner has spent time talking at Rotary, Kiwanis, high school clinics, elementary schools, DARE programs and other civic organizations.
Wagner often speaks at Oregon State Business roundtable luncheons and has spent time with the Zonta Service Fountain of Corvallis, the Professional Faculty Leadership Association, Altrusa and the Triad faculty club.
Wagner served as honorary speaker at the 2006 Oregon State African-American Graduation and branched outside of the coaching ranks by working as a television analyst on FSN during the 2006, 2007 and 2008 WNBA seasons and playoffs.
