Jacksonville State women’s basketball coach Rick Pietri is stepping down.
Pietri, 60, coached the Gamecocks for the past 13 years and won a school-record 197 games. Before coming to Jax State, he coached South Alabama for 13 years and set the school record for wins there, too, with 220 victories.
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According to Sports Reference’s thorough website of college basketball statistics, Pietri’s combined 417 head coaching wins rank No. 102 all-time in the women’s college game.
He told his staff his decision to retire Wednesday night, just hours after his team lost to Florida International in the Conference USA quarterfinals. He told his players at an 11:15 a.m. meeting today. He informed The Anniston Star by telephone at about 12:30 p.m.
“For me, there are some personal circumstances that have contributed to the decision,” Pietri told The Star. “Those have crept in and pushed to the forefront this season.
“I’m blessed that I spent a very long time coaching in Alabama and being in the Alabama retirement system. So, I can step away and still sustain myself.”
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Pietri also coached high school basketball for eight years, including four at B.C. Rain where his team won the school’s only boys basketball state championship in 1997 and finished runner-up twice. Only one other B.C. Rain made the state finals.
He was a men’s basketball assistant coach at Spring Hill College for four years and Birmingham-Southern for one.
At Jacksonville State, Pietri’s best season came in 2021-22 when the Gamecocks won 24 games and the ASUN Conference West Division championship. They also reached the finals of the ASUN tournament before falling to Florida Gulf Coast.
For Pietri’s last season, he made it a good one. He made it no secret how much he enjoyed coaching this particular group. Picked last in a preseason poll of Conference USA’s 12 women’s basketball coaches, Jax State finished seventh — only two games out of third place.
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The squad finished 16-16, including 9-9 in the league. Despite being down to eight players because of injuries and attrition, the Gamecocks reached the CUSA quarterfinals. They beat Texas-El Paso in double overtime in the first round. Then 24 hours later, they faced off against second-seeded Florida International and hung tough before falling 76-66.
“I’m appreciative of this team, for what they did this year,” Pietri said after the loss. “We finished 16-16. This was a team that was picked to finish dead last, and we finished seventh, and we just gave the second-ranked team in our conference all they could handle after playing 50 minutes the day before. So, I have a lot of pride of what this team was able to accomplish.”
Jacksonville State University released a formal announcement of Pietri’s retirement at 2 p.m.
“After 26 consecutive years as a head Division I women’s basketball coach, and 39 years coaching men, boys and women, it is time for me to step away,” Pietri said in the news release. “It has been one of the greatest privileges of my life to serve as the head women’s basketball coach at Jacksonville State University. I was so blessed to have the support of my devoted wife, Suzanne and my sons, Wesley and Jordan, who endured family sacrifices that came with being the family of a Division I coach. As my life takes on a new path, I understand clearly how fortunate I have been. I will forever be grateful to have experienced life as a Jax State Gamecock.”
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Greg Seitz, the university’s vice president for athletics, released the following statement:
“During his 13 seasons at Jacksonville State, Rick helped guide our program through an important era and led one of the most successful seasons in our Division I history with the 2021-22 team. We are grateful for the leadership and dedication he brought to Jax State and wish Rick and his family all the best as he begins this next chapter in retirement.”
