Meet
new women’s hoops coach Mary Hegarty
By Jamie Ouye
Summer On-line Forty-Niner
Mary
Hegarty, new head coach for the women’s
basketball team, is excited about the atmosphere
of Long Beach State’s athletics department.
The support that both the university and
the community have for the program is what
attracted her to the position. The job is
also near her Southern California network
of family that range from Tustin to San
Clemente. She is close to her family and
those who attend her games will probably
see them there cheering her on.
“You wouldn’t believe how many Division
I schools say that they support their athletic
programs, but don’t provide the financial
or emotional support,” said Mary Hegarty,
head coach of Long Beach State women’s basketball
team. “I am happy to be here, where I have
the resources and the support of the university.”
Hegarty said she is looking forward to the
high caliber athletes that Long Beach State
attracts. She said that much of the team’s
success would rely on how quickly the team
can adjust to a new coach. The Beach lost
a couple of important seniors, including
first-team All-Big West Conference player,
Glory Johnson, but they have enough players
red-shirting that the team will consist
of mainly returning members.
After reviewing film of last season’s team,
she looks to definitely improve the team’s
shot selection. Hegarty thinks that the
team has been too eager to put up a shot
and does not make their opponents play defense.
She would also like to see more use of the
glass around the basket, but she does have
confidence in the team’s defense.
Hegarty made an impression on the world
of women’s basketball when she produced
the UC Los Angeles all time record of 240
assists as a freshman in the 1980-81 season.
Nearing the end of her college career in
1984, she began her coaching career as an
undergraduate assistant coach at UCLA. She
had some adjustments to make, but she simply
loved to coach because of the freedom, the
insight, and the responsibility that coaching
entails.
“(Coaching) lets you inside and allows you
to see what you don’t as a player,” Hegarty
said. “I almost want to recommend to players
to do some coaching before they end their
playing career because you see so much more.”
Hegarty comes to Long Beach after spending
10 years as head coach of Chapman University
Division III women’s basketball. She led
a team that had previously gone 2-23 to
a 7-17 record in her first season at the
helm. By the end of her 10 years, Chapman
had become a consistent contender for the
NCAA tournament. In the 2001-02 season they
made their way into the Sweet 16 with a
record of 23-5.
Away from the court Hegarty likes to jog
and cycle. She has run in San Francisco
marathons twice and a Chicago marathon once.
Recently, she has been sidelined from running
with an injury to her foot and that is what
has brought her into the sport of cycling.
Even though she enjoys cycling she is looking
forward to hopefully make her way back to
running.
|
