Women's Basketball Assistants Leave
April 11, 2000
CORVALLIS, Ore. -- All three assistant coaches in Oregon State's women's basketball program have announced they are leaving the program and will be pursuing other interests and opportunities.
Head Coach Judy Spoelstra's staff this past season at OSU included Trisha Sears, Karen Deden-Westwater and Brenda Bumgardner.
Deden-Westwater gave birth during the season (January) to a daughter, Cheyenne. Karen has decided to drop out of coaching at this time and devote full time to being a mother. Karen and her husband, Elliot, will be moving to Missoula, Montana, where Elliot has a business headquartered.
Sears and Bumgardner are both leaving the OSU program to pursue other coaching or teaching opportunities.
Sears has been an assistant coach for the Beavers the past five years. Sears came to OSU with Spoelstra from Montana State, where she served as an assistant from 1994-95. Sears is a 1994 graduate of Montana State and former basketball four-year letter winner.
Bumgardner joined the OSU program in 1997. Prior to that, Brenda was on the staff at Miami (Ohio) University (1996-97), Lebanon Valley College (1994-96), Millersville University in Mellersville, PA from 1992-94 and at Montana State University from 1989-91. Brenda is a 1989 graduate of the University of Northern Iowa.
Deden-Westwater had two stints with the Beavers. She first joined the staff in 1995-96 and left to play professional basketball in the American Basketball League. After playing two years for the New England Blizzard, Karen returned to OSU as an assistant coach in June, 1998.
